Chupa is a newly launched mobile app component marketplace that joins the ranks of sites like TechCrunch Disrupt finalist Verious and Appcelerator’s Open Mobile Marketplace. However, there is one key difference between competitors’ sites and Chupa: in addition to native applications (iOS and Android), it also supports a variety of frameworks, including Appcelerator’s Titanium, PhoneGap, JQuery and Sencha Touch.
Like Verious and Appcelerator’s Open Mobile Marketplace, the idea with Chupa is to help developers speed their time to market by offering app components they can license and use in their apps for a fee, instead of having to write their own code.
Based in Italy, Chupa was first launched in July as an invitation-only marketplace, where it quickly acquired over 300 mobile app component developers wanting to sell their code on the site. It’s now exiting its private beta period and is open to all as a public beta.
The site lets you browse, search and filter the listings by platform (iOS, Android, Titanium or Web app) and it further breaks down the components into categories based on function (e.g., utilities, audio, image, video, navigation, UI elements, etc.). Prices appear to be reasonable, with some components available for as little as $12.00 (USD).
Unfortunately, it appears that although support will be provided for a wide variety of platforms, the site is still lacking an abundance of actual code. Many of the sections are currently empty, making Verious the better choice for now for those looking for sheer quantity in terms of resources. (Verious launched with 1,000 listings, for example, while Appcelerator launched with 50).
Developers who write app components themselves can list them on Chupa for sale. Chupa took a 20% commission on component sales during its private beta, which is in line with the offer Verious was providing to its charter members. (Verious may go up to 40% over time, however). Appcelerator, meanwhile, takes the standard 70/30 (developer/app store) split, which is what Chupa is listing on its site now.
Chupa was founded by Stefano Argiolas and Paolo De Santis, who are also the co-founders of Dlite, a multimedia digital marketing company which has previously provided mobile campaigns to brands like Nike, Renault, 20th Century Fox and Nokia.