Simplifying the Complexity of Global Developer Payments

StartApp offers superior app monetization for developers, helping them maximize return on investment on the free apps they develop. To facilitate developer payments, StartApp had to calculate the revenue generated on user accounts at the end of each calendar month, based on a Pay Per Download, number of installs, and country distribution model. StartApp then had to transfer money to the developer on a net 30 basis.

The Challenge

Keren Ofek, Vice President of Finance for StartApp, faced the challenge of manually distributing hundreds of developer payments every month to payees all over the world. Each country has different rules for different forms of payment and the fees for a single payment method, such as a wire transfer, vary greatly. Then there was the myriad of regulations that countries enforce to block money laundering and funding of terrorism

In order to maintain accuracy in this environment of complexity, a StartApp staff member had to spend several days manually uploading data, a time consuming and inefficient process. To remedy this problem, Ms. Ofek evaluated a number of solutions, discovering that many of them were missing critical elements, such as tax reporting and global remittance. She selected Tipalti, which promised to be the solution that addressed all of her needs.

The Solution

That promise was soon fulfilled. The quick and user-friendly implementation of Tipalti required only that StartApp integrate a few lines of HTML. Tipalti streamlined and automated the way StartApp makes global mass developer payments, becoming an integral part of StartApp’s accounts payable process. Tipalti’s solution now addresses all phases of app monetization pay-out, from developer registration, tax and regulatory compliance and payment method selection to developer funds disbursement and payment status communications to their developers, all while helping StartApp maintain branding throughout this experience.

Results

As Ms. Ofek notes, “From the first test of Tipalti by StartApp, the results were perfect. Tipalti takes care of StartApp’s entire cycle of payments to developers, including sending out 1099 and 1042-S forms at the end of the year. And from implementation through today, Tipalti’s customer support has proven to be fast, friendly and highly capable.”