Disney Interactive, the online presence of the Walt Disney Company has acquired Tapulous, a US-based developer of the wildly-popular ‘Tap Tap Revenge’ and other games for the Apple iOS platform.
The iPhone gaming start-up has had several hits and was…
Disney Interactive, the online presence of the Walt Disney Company has acquired Tapulous, a US-based developer of the wildly-popular ‘Tap Tap Revenge’ and other games for the Apple iOS platform.
The iPhone gaming start-up has had several hits and was founded by Bart Decrem, who will join Disney as a senior VP. COO Andrew Lacy will also join Disney as a senior VP.
Disney Interactive is very interested in social and mobile gaming, having recently invested in Playdom’s US$33 million round.
Although the price that Disney acquired Tapulous for has not been disclosed, the start-up recently raised US$1.8 million from angel investors including Marc Benioff, Jeff Clavier, and Andy Bechtolsheim.
Tap Tap Revenge evolved into numerous versions which have been downloaded millions of times. The basic game, which lets players tap to the rhythm of songs with their fingers is free, but players must pay for new songs. Tapulous’ latest game is Tap Tap Radiation for the iPad.
Decrem, said that Tapulous: “is going to be at the centre of Disney’s mobile strategy.”
Disney has already had some success with phone apps, including a game with an Alice in Wonderland theme and a puzzle game called Jelly Car 2.
“Mobile gaming is seeing unprecedented growth and this is the right time to invest to strengthen our position in the mobile business,” said Disney Interactive’s president Steve Wadsworth in a statement. “In a short time, Bart and Andrew have built Tapulous into a successful and accomplished mobile games developer that’s emerged as one of the most successful companies in the industry.
