MSM Studio

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a publisher based in Norway. We publish different magazines, and have a 6% market share. We're also a European and global company.

What is your position?

I'm the head of digital marketing within the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with MSM Studio?

They developed an app for us. We publish a magazine for girls between the ages of 10 and 15. We wanted to develop a diary app for that target group.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

We supplied the specifications they needed with which they designed and developed the application, from the user interface, to how buttons looked and worked, etc.

How did you come to work with MSM Studio?

We have a global app division in Denmark that uses MSM Studio. We didn't shop around; we chose them because they had worked with our corporation in the past. We knew they would do a good job at a competitive price.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The size of the project is between $10,000 and $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work began just over a year ago. The project was implemented in multiple stages and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We were very satisfied with the execution of the work. I don’t have any metrics to share but I can tell you that so far we have been pleased with the quality of their development. MSM Studio has done a good job of meeting deadlines and I would say that they are providing good value.

What distinguishes MSM Studio from other providers?

They were very realistic. They didn’t put on a big show or anything. They were down to earth and trustworthy. I enjoyed that about them.

Is there anything MSM Studio could have improved or done differently?

They could be more proactive when it comes to problem solving.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We're an independent publisher and packager based in London, UK. We've existed for twenty years, and our background is with illustrated books. We produce between 50 to 80 titles a year for major international clients.

What is your position?

I'm the publishing manager in the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with MSM Studio?

As part of our business, we commission material for illustrated books. We tend to own the copyright outright. We were looking to reuse that material, and find an alternative revenue stream.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

They developed a series of mobile apps for iOS and Android, called The Great Battle Series. We took material that we'd created for a series of books, which featured key battles in history, gave them that material, and they made the design. They put it together and made the template which we’ve used for a total of eight apps.

How did you come to work with MSM Studio?

I found them from an online search and then we did an interview to see if it was a strong fit. We had a limited budget but this wasn't a complex project technically. They were a fit for our budget and we trusted their ability to stick to the agreed upon price and deliver on time.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

It was under $10,000 per app. The total cost was less than $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work is completed, but we're exploring going back and creating more apps. We are fairly confident that these first history apps will be a commercial success.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Generally, the reviews are very positive, with the exception of the usual complaints coming from people that want everything free. We have released a free app, for the battle of Gettysburg, which received a significant number of downloads.

There are a number of American organizations that produce content on this subject, so we saw no reason to try and compete. We treated it as a loss leader, to encourage people to download the others in the series.

How did MSM Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

We weren't looking for a cutting edge app, but rather one that looked good, and did the job. We were working within a constrained budget, so we wanted to make sure that we could recoup our costs. We managed to do that, so we're satisfied with MSM and their performance.

What distinguishes MSM Studio from other providers?

Martin, the managing director is a nice guy, and great to do business with. He's very straight forward, and when they give you a quote, they stick to it.

Is there anything MSM Studio could have improved or done differently?

I can't think of anything specific.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Egmont Publishing is part of the Egmont Group, which consists of a number of media companies. Egmont Publishing specializes in magazines and kids' apps. I was responsible for our portfolio of kids' apps on iOS and Android. 

We had license agreements with Disney, Hasbro, Mattel, and so on, as well as having our own brands. I say "had," because in September [2015], we moved all of our apps development to an external company in Denmark. We've retained only two, with one of them being Donald Duck Plus. We kept it because it's very close to our publishing catalog.

What is your position?

I am head of digital management for app development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with MSM Studio?

Project managers and part of the creative team is done in house. We outsource all development and special services like translation, speech, and music.

The subscription for the print version of Donald Duck magazine is big in Denmark. We wanted to create a digital version of the Donald Duck universe, where users could get various stories through a monthly subscription. 

It's not a magazine format where you would have a number of stories in one magazine. Here, they are in the hundreds. You could search for Mickey Mouse, humor, and more. It's updated continuously with new content. We have an editor that publishes the stories using the back-end platform.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

They do the mobile app development, and backend features. There is only an iOS version of this app, but MSM worked with us on all our apps, some of which were for Android as well.

How did you come to work with MSM Studio?

We were already working with them when I started two years ago. I'm unsure how the engagement started, but they were highly regarded.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

$It was between $50,000 and $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

At the moment, the app is stable. We haven't done an update for three months. We'll probably do an update in the first or second quarter of next year, and add some new features.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

App quality is critical when it comes to working with Disney. They're an important client for us. That's a testimonial for MSM Publishing, as we've worked with them for so long. We've worked with other companies, inside and outside of Denmark, so we could have switched without a problem.

How did MSM Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

I was in constant contact with one of their project managers in particular. It's been an easy relationship. MSM Studio was very service-minded. If you have a problem, they will react quickly. If you have a new idea, they will work on it without charging extra. All in all, we've had no major crisis. They've performed as expected, and it's why we kept them for so many years.

What distinguishes MSM Studio from other providers?

They're very pleasant to work with. They're pragmatic, and helped us find win-win solutions to any problems in the project. We've never had a major crisis. It's been a smooth ride.

Is there anything MSM Studio could have improved or done differently?

I'm sure their project manager could easily find something to improve on, but I can't think of anything.