UIEvolution launches new software for app developers

UIEvolution has launched a new software platform for mobile application developers designed to help them address what the company calls “connected apps.” The platform, dubbed UIEMagnify, lets any outlet producing an app—developers, brands, media companies and the like—enhance the app with a number of connectivity possibilities.

UIEMagnify, an extension of the company’s UIEngine platform, is designed to boost app users’ engagement by “supercharging” apps, said Chris Ruff, CEO of UIEvolution —so that mobile apps on smartphones, tablets, TVs and autos connect out to a wide range of cloud-based services. Users can connect with social media services such as Facebook and Twitter, for example, link to music and video from YouTube, hook to content catalogs from other providers, integrate with digital advertising networks and provide content payment solutions.

“We realized if we were really going to improve the user experience, we were going to have to make some investment on the server side,” Ruff said. “We’re not trying to recreate services—we’re trying to put our user management and user experience spin on them.”

UIEMagnify features a common set of APIs that lets app developers turn on only the features they want, giving app creators more control over how they customize their apps. “We’re about creating tools and creating software,” Ruff said. “We take a bunch of Internet services and magnify them to make them work on all these platforms.”

The platform should be useful for smaller app developers that may not have the resources to scale up and enhance the capabilities of their apps, Ruff said.

“Most of our customers experiment with small apps developers, but you have to have project management capabilities to work with big companies like AT&T,” he said. “They’ll overwhelm you with their requirements.”