Social Networking Watch: News on the Social Networking and Social Media Industry

Offerpal Media Launches Cross-Platform User Acquisition And Re-engagement Channel

PR WEB - July 20 - Offerpal Media launches SocialKast, a new user acquisition and re-engagement solution that makes it easy for game developers to connect with massive audiences across multiple social channels and major media platforms. Offerpal’s SocialKast will provide access to more than one billion users in over 150 countries through integrations with open application platform providers such as Yahoo! and others.

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Offerpal Media Launches GamePoints.com

PRESS RELEASE - May 4 - Offerpal Media announced the beta launch of GamePoints.com, a consumer Web site that rewards its members with virtual currency for use in online games when they shop at big-brand retailers, take part in offers from trusted advertisers, complete market research surveys, watch online videos, trade in unwanted gift cards or conduct other marketing actions. Game Points can be exchanged for in-game virtual currency in more than 1,500 online games and apps across the Web’s top social networking platforms, virtual worlds, MMOs and other gaming sites. FULL ARTICLE @ PR NEWSWIRE

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Offerpal Media Acquires Tapjoy

PRESS RELEASE - Mar 23 - Offerpal Media, the leader in virtual currency payment alternatives, has acquired Tapjoy, creators of the Tapjoy platform for mobile developers and the leading provider of monetization and distribution services on the iPhone, Android and other emerging mobile platforms. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. FULL ARTICLE @ PR NEWSWIRE

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Scamville Marches Onto The iPhone

TECH CRUNCH - Mar 14 - In our Scamville series of posts last October we exposed the massive user fraud occurring Facebook and MySpace social games. Fake quizzes tied to long term mobile subscriptions, malware-laden toolbar downloads and other scams were the center of the controversy. Now we’re seeing the same old scams hit the iPhone. And the same players, particularly OfferPal Media and SuperRewards and now Google, are powering those scams. New Offerpal CEO George Garrick promised to take a leadership position in cleaning up scammy ads. SMS subscription scams are among the most lucrative offers to game publishers because users get a recurring fee of $10 – $25 per month until they are able to terminate the subscription. Many users never notice them, and those that do usually have a lot of trouble getting them shut off. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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Social Gamers Want Marketing Offers For Currency

TECH CRUNCH - Mar 9 - A new study by Comscore will be released on Wednesday that may give hope to social gaming startups trying to monetize users. 35% of the survey respondents said that they engage in “marketing actions” to earn virtual currency (such as watching a video, filling out a survey, etc.), and 53% said they be willing to consider marketing action for currency if given the choice. The study was sponsored by Offerpal. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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2009 Businesswoman Of The Year: Anu Shukla

INDUS BUSINESS JOURNAL - Dec 9 - Anu Shukla is founder of Offerpal Media, a company that specializes in apps that allow online publishers to generate revenue from virtual currency. According to the company, since its launch it has issued more than 730 billion virtual points to over 160M consumers across 1,200 publishers and 190 countries. FULL ARTICLE @ INDUS BUSINESS JOURNAL

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Facebook, MySpace, Zynga, RockYou, Offerpal, SuperRewards & More May Face Class Action Suit

TECH CRUNCH – Nov 12 – Sacramento based law firm Kershaw, Cutter & Ratinoff, LLP is investigating Facebook, MySpace, Zynga, RockYou, Offerpal Media, SuperRewards and many others in connection to complaints about unauthorized charges and misleading offers. TechCrunch is also in talks with another law firm considering a class action lawsuit. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

Offerpal Names A New CEO, Shukla Is Out

TECH CRUNCH – Nov 4 – George Garrick will replace Anu Shukla as the CEO of Offerpal Media, the leader in virtual currency monetization for online games, virtual worlds and social networks. Offerpal has been a key actor in the recent controversy over lead-gen scams in social gaming. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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The Social Gaming Scam

TECH CRUNCH - Oct 31 - Lead Gen Scams are the name of the game in the multi-million dollar social gaming market on Facebook and MySpace. Developers, like Zynga, are monetizing their games by selling in-game currency in exchange for real life cash or lead gen-type offers. The pricey and seemingly fraudulent offers are implemented through companies like Offerpal and SuperRewards and their network of vendor partners. Facebook and MySpace are doing little to protect their users. However, some companies are taking a stand. PlentyofFish founder, Markus Frind, had this to say, “These kind of scams have been going on for years and I get several emails a month from these vendors promising to make me millions of dollars a month. I’ve no doubt I could make millions a month off these scams, but they are scams and will eventually bring government regulations.” James Hong, founder of HOTorNOT also added, “We ran offers like this back in 2005 for a very short period of time at HOTorNOT, that is until we realized what was going on. In a nutshell, the offers that monetize the best are the ones that scam/trick users.” FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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Offerpal Media Powers Virtual Currency Monetization For Zwinky And IWON

PR NEWSWIRE - Sep 22 - Offerpal Media, thevirtual currency monetization solution for game developers and social publishers, announced a partnership with social media developer Mindspark Interactive Network, Inc., a wholly owned business of IAC, to monetize virtual currency for Zwinky and IWON. Mindspark selected Offerpal Media's virtual currency payment platform to enable Zwinky and IWON players to earn virtual currency in the form of ZBucks, Zcards, and IWON coins. FULL ARTICLE @ PR NEW

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Offerpal Testing Its Own Virtual Currency

INSIDE FACEBOOK -- Aug 11 -- Offerpal Media, one of the largest virtual currency monetization platforms for Facebook, MySpace, and online game developers, is now testing its own virtual currency called Offerpal Credits. With Offerpal Payments, users can purchase Offerpal Credits, which can then be redeemed within any app or game in the Offerpal network. Credits can be purchased via PayPal, credit card, Zong, Boku, Amazon, Spare Change, and the Ultimate Gamer Card. FULL ARTICLE @ INSIDE FACEBOOK

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OfferPal Sues Kickflip For Starting Competitive Service

TECH CRUNCH -- June 12 -- Offerpal Media, an advertising platform concentrated on helping developers monetize social networks by offering virtual currency in exchange for participating in ‘offers’ like online surveys, has filed suit against Kickflip, the company behind the Gambit payment engine. The suit alleges that Kickflip temporarily used Offerpal’s services for the purpose of stealing knowledge of how the service worked, which it then used to start a competitor. Kickflip has issued the following statement regarding the suit: We were game makers long before we built Gambit. As game makers, we used the services of both OfferPal and SuperRewards. We noticed these services couldn’t keep up with our needs, so we decided to build our own, which turned into Gambit. We are confident that this lawsuit has absolutely no merit. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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Offerpal Media Partners With IMVU

PRESS RELEASE -- June 9 -- Offerpal Media, the leader in advertising and monetization on social networks and applications, partners with IMVU, an avatar-based social network, to allow IMVU users to earn free digital credits for participating in any of Offerpal’s 2,500+ scientifically targeted and relevant advertising offers, including free trials, big-brand discounts, online surveys and more. FULL ARTICLE @ MARKETWIRE

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Facebook Platform Developers Could See $500M In Revenue

VENTURE BEAT -- May 8 -- A growing number of game makers on Facebook are making money from virtual goods — from poker chips to virtual clothes. The combined ecosystem of these game developers and other companies supplying services to them could generate half a billion dollars in revenue in 2009. A few companies, led by Offerpal and Super Rewards, provide a set of tools for letting developers integrate these offers into their games. The leading game developer is currently Zynga, which offers a range of apps including Texas Hold ‘Em. FULL ARTICLE @ VENTURE BEAT

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Offerpal Media Launches Onboarding Application

PRESS RELEASE -- Mar 19 -- Offerpal Media, the monetization platform for social applications, social games, virtual worlds, mobile applications and other community-oriented Web publishers, launched a standalone onboarding application, which allows Web sites to implement Offerpal's "Managed Offer Platform" quickly straight from the Offerpal Media site. Offerpal Media's platform monetizes social traffic by enabling users to earn points or other types of virtual currencies in exchange for taking part in advertising offers such as free trials, online surveys, big-brand discounts and more. FULL ARTICLE @ THE EARTH TIMES

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Offerpal Media Launches Onboarding App For MySpace

NEWS TIP -- Sep 4 -- Offerpal Media, the "Managed Offer Platform" for applications on Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, hi5 and other social networks, has launched its MySpace native onboarding application to help app developers implement Offerpal's ad solution.  Users can earn points, rewards or other types of virtual currency by participating in free trials, surveys, big-brand discounts and more.

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Which Facebook App Is Making A Million Dollars A Month?

TECH CRUNCH -- Aug 25 -- A Facebook ad network that is able to get effective CPMs of ~50c, has only paid out a little more than $8m total to application developers since it launched a year ago. Yet AllFacebook claims: one developer is generating over $1m a month. I've heard this million-dollar-a-month claim before. It came from Anu Shukla, the CEO of Offerpal Media, a lead generation network for Facebook apps that gives users a way to earn virtual currency by looking at an ad and completing an action. According to Shukla, about 200 apps on Facebook and elsewhere are tying their virtual currency to Offerpal and that "there are publishers earning up to $1m a month with a single app." Friends For Sale! is one of them. This app lets you "buy and sell your friends as pets" and includes a virtual gift shop as well. It boasts 4.5m monthly active users, making it one of the biggest apps on Facebook. FULL ARTICLE @ TECH CRUNCH

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