Facebook itself may be facing down its IPO, struggling to monetize the millions of mobile users that connect to its services. But that isn't stopping iSwifter, whose TheWorx app reproduces Facebook, complete with Flash games, on an iPad.
According to the company, TheWorx will be available in June. The company will display the ads Facebook shows in a vertical column down the right-hand side, then place Facebook - with Flash games streamed from its own server - to the right.
According to Rajat Gupta, the founder of the site, iSwifter will be initially showing the ads that Facebook would normally display to a user, presumably on its Web site. All of that revenue will go to Facebook, he said.
In the future, however, Gupta said that his company has the option of selling its own advertising, essentially "framing" the site by selling its own advertising alongside third-party content. However, Gupta said that iSwifter was not only bringing more mobile users to Facebook, but that the practice of selling ads was enabled via its use of the open Open Graph APIs that Facebook makes available to its partners.
"Facebook shouldn't have any problem with this at all," Gupta said.
Facebook representatives couldn't be immediately reached for comment following Gupta's remarks.
iSwifter already markets a Flash Web browser on the Apple App Store, that promises, among other things, to allow users to play Flash games like those found on Facebook.
"It's clear that Facebook users are moving to mobile faster than even Facebook predicted," Gupta said in a statement. "theWorx is intended to benefit Facebook users who can't play games on the Facebook iPad app or on the mobile Facebook site, as well as Facebook itself who doesn't display their ads to these gaming users on mobile. And of course game developers should be happy too because their Facebook Flash games now come to the iPad with no porting required."
Within TheWorx, users will have access to games and other apps through an "App Hub" in the app, and users will use iTunes in app purchases (IAP) to buy access to game streaming, the company said.
As Facebook continues its IPO week, the company has already admitted that it makes very little money on mobile, with the bulk from desktop advertising. Although the company made about $1 billion for the first quarter, its profits have also declined. In 2011, powerhouse social games developer Zynga contributed about 11 percent of Facebook's revenue.
"The need for theWorx is based on three undeniable trends. First, there will be over 50 million iPads sold in 2012; more than 50 percent of Facebook's active users access Facebook on mobile; and mobile advertising revenue is projected to exceed $17 billion dollars by 2015," explained Gupta. "In addition, a recent survey shows that gaming is increasingly turning into the primary use for tablets users, with nearly 25 percent of all tablet gamers paying for virtual goods."
iSwifter also appeared to be positioning itself as an alternative platform of sorts to Facebook, asking developers to contact the company if they wanted to be featured on its App Hub.
For more on Facebook, please read: Can Facebook Compete in the Ad Game? as well as 10 Things to Know About the Facebook IPO.
Editor's Note: This story was updated at 4:17 PM PT with comments by iSwifter's Gupta.
For more from Mark, follow him on Twitter @MarkHachman.
