Tapjoy, others defend ad networks as alternative to traditional advertising

Tapjoy, which claims some 13 million registered users, recently updated its SDK in order to use HTML5 Web pages. The change bypasses restrictions from Apple on incentivized ads. However, that didn't stop TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington from lambasting Tapjoy. The dust-up is an example of how the mobile gaming industry is still trying to figure out the best way to earn a profit while complying with app stores' terms of service. "There's a lot of inaccurate information out there about the model," said Chris Akhavan, Tapjoy's vice president and general manager of partnerships and strategic promotions. "This notion of just generating a lot of volume to get up in the charts? That is very much a two-years-ago thing." Special report