AppGratis Raises $13M From Iris, Others

AppGratis said it raised $13 million from Iris Capital and other investors. No other detail on the investment partners was available. AppGratis is developing app discovery technology.

PRESS RELEASE

AppGratisTM Raises €10 M from Iris Capital and other financial players

PARIS – January 18, 2013 – AppGratis today announced a €10 M financing round from Iris Capital, managing the joint Orange/Publicis venture capital initiative, and other financial players. AppGratis makes it easier for consumers to discover quality apps in a crowded App Store, and has seen early success by working closely with mobile app developers to offer an undiscovered paid app for free for 24 hours. The company currently averages over $1M in monthly revenue and will use the funding to further establish their stronghold as the worldwide leader in app discovery. A true global brand with 7 million users in over 30 countries and employees from twelve nations, AppGratis will be investing in top talent, expanding research and development efforts, and refining their technology as they continue to expand internationally.

“AppGratis is a champion in the fast growing app marketing market which is expected to be worth $25 billion by 2015,” said Sophie Dingreville, Partner at Iris Capital. “The AppGratis team has built a successful, fast growing and profitable business in a short period of time and they are in a strong position to become the global leader in app discovery.”

AppGratis offers a unique and validated approach to app discovery, regularly sending featured apps to the top five and beyond in the App Store as a consequence of increased general interest. AppGratis originally began as an email newsletter that founder Simon Dawlat shared among friends and has since expanded into an app discovery service available around the world. AppGratis has maintained its personalized tone and thanks to feedback buttons and advanced algorithms, recommendations improve overtime to accommodate a consumer’s personal preferences.

AppGratis also announced that they have seen great momentum in the New Year, now averaging over 100,000 new users per day worldwide and up to 300,000 users on the best days. AppGratis is available for iPad and iPhone in 12 languages, in over 120 countries, and quickly topped the App Store charts after launching in the U.S. in December. The daily-deals app service is ranked in the Top 10 overall in the U.S., #2 in the UK and is ranked in the Top 10 in over 30 countries worldwide. AppGratis delivered over 100 million referral clicks to the App Store last year, helping connect developers with the right users looking for new video, music, games or productivity apps.

“We’re helping developers build visibility for their apps at a time when the App Store can seem overwhelming with choices,” said AppGratis founder Simon Dawlat. “Our app recommendations are tailored over time to user preferences, which drives high success rates. When we feature an app, we can deliver over 500k app downloads that day. It’s a win-win for both developers and consumers.”

“AppGratis featured our app, iFunFace, in January and really moved the needle for us,” said Jean François Mitchell, CEO of DryGin Studios. “We saw over 550,000 downloads in one day and were boosted to the #1 spot in the App Store in over a dozen countries.”

Download AppGratis today at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/appgratis-1-free-app-day- other/id565956236?mt=8.
About Iris Capital Iris Capital is a pan-European venture capital fund manager specializing in digital economy. Since its inception in 1986, the Iris Capital team has invested more than €900 million in more than 200 companies. Iris Capital targets opportunities in service or technology companies, seeking growth capital in order to realize their strategy. It provides active support to its portfolio companies on the basis of its strong sector specialization and experience, and has offices in Paris, Düsseldorf, San Francisco, Montreal, Riyadh, Dubai, Beijing and Tokyo. In 2012 Iris Capital has entered into a strategic partnership with Orange and Publicis to manage their
joint venture capital initiative.