“We’ve seen a lot of games that have integrated providers who will show you an ad for another game,” says Neil Rimer, cofounder of Index Ventures, who is skeptical about the quality of Jana’s impressions. “I’m not a believer because you tune the ad out completely.”
Jana avoids that by personalizing mCent to the relevant users, Eagle counters, and tracking time spent in apps downloaded.
Eagle also says some of the critics of his corporate-sponsored approach are being paternalistic. “Giving access to only a small slice is not a great service. We want people to have access to the [whole] Internet. The benefit far outweighs the downside of exposing people to global brands.”