What you need to know
- A popular UWP developer decided to make his own ad monetization platform since Microsoft is killing its own.
- Microsoft will shut down the Microsoft Ad Monetization platform for UWP apps on June 1, 2020.
- Pubfinity currently works on games from Random Salad Games and will work with high-quality apps as its rollout continues.
A new ad monetization platform called Pubfinity was created for UWP apps because Microsoft is shutting down its own Ad Monetization platform (via CNBC). Pubfinity was created by Sam Kaufmann, the owner of Random Salad Games, which has several apps in the Microsoft Store, including Simple Solitaire, Simple Mahjong, and Hearts Deluxe. Kaufmann told CNBC that he made a seven figure income off his apps, which is enough to pay his group of developers. Kaufmann suspected that Microsoft might pull the plug on its Ad Monetization platform, so he began work on a replacement months ago.
When Microsoft first announced that it was ending support for its Ad Monetization platform, many complained about a lack of alternatives. Additionally, Microsoft's poor communication on the matter exacerbated the situation and led to frustration from UWP developers. Even before that announcement, Kaufmann noticed that the performance and quality of ads within his apps were declinining. Kaufmann created an SDK that could slot in and replace Microsoft's ad monetization efforts. That creation turned into Pubfinity.
Pubfinity is currently used by Random Salad Games, but will work with other apps in the future. Kaufmann told CNBC "My immediate need was to monetize my own apps" adding, "The ultimate goal is to position Pubfinity as a replacement for the Microsoft SDK going away."
Pubfinity isn't the only alternative UWP developers can choose. Vungle also works with Windows 10. But generally speaking, there are very few options for Windows 10 developers when it comes to ad integration and monetization.
Kaufmann said creating Pubfinity was a "huge undertaking" which involved speaking with advertizers, learning the best practices for the platform, and making sure Pubfinity was GDPR compliant. He's targeting the June shutdown date of the Microsoft Ad Monetization platform as a goal to expand the availability of Pubfinity. He emphasized that Pubfinity will have a "very strict review process" and that they "want it to be an improvement and make it a place where developers can make money but not sacrifice the quality of their offerings."
