Moving Average Inc.

iOS Acquisitions and Investments

Due diligence services on iOS apps and teams

John M. P. Knox

Founder

Introduction

Are you considering an investment, merger, or acquisition of an iOS App or related business? I've cleaned up acquired codebases, acqui-hired teams, and have helped software companies perform due diligence on acquisition targets.

Technically evaluating an iOS app entails examining the codebase, crash statistics, git repository, and testing the app's UI. This phase considers the systems built to support app development, the integrity of the documentation, and the code's maintainability. It also examines if the code has unusual dependencies, uses deprecated APIs, and if it has warnings during the build. In some cases, it might explore how the app handles the user's private data.

Evaluating the business side of the iOS app involves looking at user reviews, the revenue numbers, App Store Optimization (ASO), and metrics conversion rates. An acquisition might depend on some expectation of opportunities to improve the business through App Store Optimization, improved pricing, marketing efforts, or simple tweaks to the sales funnel.

When an acquisition involves hiring talent, take special care. A slick-looking app doesn't prove anything. I've seen talent acquisitions go south when the acquiring company lacks the skills to evaluate native iOS developers. Mistakes like this can take years to uncover because there are no experts to diagnose why the team can't ship a quality app.

If you'd like help in this area, please drop me a line to schedule a conversation.

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