JRummy Apps — founder to exit

Overview

JRummy Apps was an Android-only software studio I founded in October 2010 — back when the platform was young, the root community was loud, and the Play Store rewarded independent developers willing to build deep, opinionated utilities. Over seven years I designed, engineered, marketed, and supported a portfolio of more than twenty-five apps that solved real problems for Android power users: managing ROMs, browsing the root file system, installing fonts, editing build.prop, taming the boot animation, and tuning the CPU.

The company was bootstrapped, profitable, and small by design. ROM Toolbox and Overclock for Android were repeatedly ranked in the top ten paid apps on Google Play — Root Browser had the larger total install base, but Android Overclock was the one that sat atop the paid charts. The full catalog crossed fifty million installs and reached more than 100,000 daily active users at peak. In July 2017, JRummy Apps Inc. was acquired by Maple Media — backed by Shamrock Capital — in a deal that transferred the entire Android utility portfolio.

What sets it apart

My role

I founded JRummy Apps in October 2010 and ran it as solo founder, designer, and engineer through the 2017 acquisition. The company stayed small on purpose — every product decision, line of Java, marketing copy, and support email was mine, which made the platform a remarkable training ground for everything from systems-level Android engineering to mobile monetization to running a profitable software business.

• Founded, incorporated, and operated the company end-to-end
• Designed and shipped 25+ Android utility, security, and root applications
• Built native engine components against root, BusyBox, and Android Recovery
• Refactored large legacy apps for modularity and 64K-method-limit relief
• Owned monetization across paid apps, IAPs, advertising, and user acquisition
• Negotiated and closed the 2017 asset acquisition by Maple Media

The catalog

• 
  Root CheckAdvanced root (superuser) access checker
• 
  ROM ToolboxThe all-in-one toolbox for Android
• 
  FontFixInstall free fonts on Android
• 
  BusyBoxBusyBox installer for Android
• 
  Root BrowserA powerful root file manager
• 
  BuildProp EditorEdit build.prop with safe rollback
• 
  Ultimate BackupThe ultimate app management tool
• 
  ROM InstallerFind and install ROMs and recoveries
• 
  Boot AnimationsInstall custom boot animations
• 
  Overclock for AndroidCPU governor and frequency tuning
• 
  Lollipop LandA game inspired by the Android 5.0 easter egg
• 
  JRummy AppsThe studio behind the catalog (2010–2018)

Capabilities

• Root access management
• File system browsing
• ROM & recovery flashing
• Custom font installation
• Boot animation theming
• CPU governor tuning
• App management & backup
• build.prop editing

Distributed across

Built on

Languages

JavaShellPHP

Platform

Android SDKLinuxAndroid Recovery

Tooling

IntelliJ IDEAEclipseADBGoogle Play ConsoleProGuardSQLite

Systems & root

BusyBoxTWRPClockworkModSELinuxDexClassLoadersystem properties

Distribution

Google Playpaid appsin-app purchasesmobile adsuser acquisition

Press & acquisition

A short reading list for the 2017 Maple Media acquisition and the broader JRummy Apps story.

• JRummy Apps, maker of various root tools, has been purchased by Maple MediaAndroid Police · July 2017
• Maple Media acquires ROM Toolbox Pro developer JRummy AppsAndroid Headlines · July 2017
• Maple Media has done 8 deals in 8 months to make mobile games more moneyVentureBeat · September 2017
• Maple Media LLC acquired JRummy Apps Inc.OEM Capital · July 2017
• r/Android · acquisition discussionReddit · July 2017

“A software company with a keen focus on Android. Founded in October of 2010. Over 50 million people have downloaded one of our useful applications.”