We all know that the local Australian development scene is growing rapidly, but it’s nice to see companies overseas recognising this fact and — better still — making investment inroads.
Tapjoy is a mobile advertising platform which helps developers monetise their applications. It has just announced it is creating The Tapjoy Australia Fund and dedicating resources and expertise to multiple local developers in Australia. Tapjoy’s fun will offer marketing and distribution support along with funds to help develop local talent.
“The Australian development community is one of the hottest, up-and-coming talent pools in the mobile space,” said Chris Akhavan, senior vice president of global partnerships at Tapjoy. “We want to offer them the tools, consultation and resources necessary to bring their apps to market, reach a global audience and monetize effectively. Through the Tapjoy Australia Fund, we are reinforcing our commitment to the outstanding Australian-based mobile development talent.”
The first studios to benefit from the fund is Defiant Development — perhaps most famous for publishing Ski Safari. Morgan Jaffit, co-found of Defiant, believes this new fund will help local developers take advantage of opportunities they might have missed out on otherwise.
“We’re excited that Tapjoy is focusing specifically on Australian developers with their new fund,” said Morgan. “There’s an incredible depth of indie talent in Australia, and Tapjoy offers an ideal way to monetize their applications and take advantage of the free-to-play opportunities in the mobile market. It’s very forward thinking to focus on enabling Australian developers to reach further with their games, and it helps to take the UA and monetization questions that all developers are tackling at the moment. I can’t wait to see what comes from the collaboration.”
Antony Reed, CEO for Game Developer Association of Australia praised Tapjoy for helping out the local industry. He hopes this investment, supplemented by the government’s $20 million investment in the interactive arts, will make life easier for local indie studios.
“Tapjoy’s reach and experience in the free-to-play space will be invaluable for our developer community,” said Antony Reed, CEO for Game Developer Association of Australia. “They are the market leaders and have the insights and distribution power needed to succeed on mobile today. With the help of Tapjoy’s marketing strength and free-to-play consulting experience, as well as Australia’s $20 million Interactive Games Fund, Australia’s indie developers will find the road to success a little less bumpy.”
Developers in Australia with at least one app published on iOS or Android should head here for more information about the fund.
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