With Analytics, Ads, and Dev Tools, Umeng is Powering Chinese Apps

Umeng is an analytics and in-app platform for iOS and Android apps that’s a Chinese rival to the American service Tapjoy. The Beijing-based Umeng was founded only last year, and is now backed by Innovation Works and serving over 10,000 mostly Chinese apps.

Last week at the 2011 China Mobile Developers Conference I dropped into the Umeng booth to hear more about its app tools. Then, a few hours later, I saw Tapjoy’s Larry Berkin on a panel giving advice to Chinese app developers on how best to take their apps globally. Then it occurred to me that, however fantastic Tapjoy’s engine is, Umeng already has a formidable network – comprising names such as McDonald’s, Meituan, Jiepang, and Dolphin Browser – that makes a lot of sense for Chinese start-ups to use.

Umeng's analytics dashoboard for app developers.

For app developers, Umeng primarily does three things:

1. App Network – Comprising in-house ads and cross-promotions, this is a way for devs to both monetize and grow at the same time. Pretty much every app that signs up for Umeng’s service makes use of these; the cross-promotions allow users of one app to discover other apps from the same network with just one click. Both these come with analytics so that impact, growth, and reach can be tracked.

2. Dev Tools – A number of tools help Chinese developers to make their apps more full-featured and social. For example, there are modular functions for giving error reports, user feedback, on-the-fly upgrades (which, yes, avoid any app store), and third-party social login with the likes of Sina or Tencent Weibo, or Renren.

3. Analytics – Of course, an app dev needs analytics like a pilot needs eyes. And so analysis of trends, audience, benchmarks, distribution channels (pictured above), and other custom events are all covered.

In addition, the company occasionally releases data reports using info gathered from Chinese users of its numerous apps. The most recent of which we used was one showing how Chinese iOS users were upgrading and updating their devices.

[Please check out the rest of our 2011 China Mobile Developers Conference coverage for a mix of panel discussions and keynote speeches (with some reviews and video demos being added later today).]