On why COVID-19 isnt the only reason mobile gaming is white
hot right now.
KAPLAN: COVID expedited a trend that had already started. Even three years ago, gaming was considered more of a niche category. Then we
started to see the emergence of casual and hypercasual games that werent just for gamers. COVID just took it to the next level.
HARISH:
Its also about the computing power of phones. Today, phones are like true gaming machines. They can run games that until 10 years ago were only possible on PCs and hardcore game gear, like PlayStation.
On the nature of investor exuberance.
KAPLAN: We raised
$1.5 billion, and our PIPE [private investments in public equity] was oversubscribed. I believe that the demand was there because investors really do understand our business and the potential for even more growth. I hope more people start to
understand it.
HARISH: Several of our investors have also invested in some of our game developer customers, so theyre also getting real feedback on
our solutions.
On the long-term growth vision.
KAPLAN: I cant make forward-looking statements, but I can say that although everyone likes to compare us to AppLovin and Unity, our vision is to build
the most comprehensive business platform we can for games and a central distribution channel for app developers, including on-device inventory.
We have a robust analytics product for monetization management and growth through our acquisition of Soomla [in January], and we have a creative management
solution through our acquisition of Luna Labs [in February]. Weve productized publishing so that independent developers can use our platform and weve expanded our offering for telcos.
Well continue growing through M&A and creating additional products to support our two key app economy constituents: game developers and telcos.
On why telcos are a major focus.
HARISH: One of the
reasons we came into that space is because every mobile user in the world is connected to the internet through a telco. There is no other way to connect when youre roaming outside of your home without WiFi, which gives telcos a massive value
proposition.
Telcos have tried many things, like preloading applications on devices, but theyve been aware for a very long time that they need to
do better. We built a platform to help telcos engage with users throughout their lifecycle and participate in the app economy while also promoting branded solutions and services, like device trade-ins and
device protection insurance.
Basically, we want to be a one-stop-shop solution for telcos to help them do more
outside of the app store and on-device while also helping with their overall digital transformation. And we do it on a rev share model, like we do with our app developers.
That removes the friction, so that when they win, we win.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
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