Tapatap rises from Atlas Mobile ashes

The guys who founded Atlas Mobile are back with a community-based contest offering for mobile phones and PCs.
Isaac Babbs, Andy Riedel and Ken Scott unveiled Tapatap Inc., a San Mateo, Calif.-based startup that allows members to create and play “photo contests” for prizes. The company is partnering with Hudson Entertainment, Consolidated Skateboards and others on sponsored contests, which-like the popular Web site HotOrNot.com-encourage users to vote on photos submitted by others.
Atlas Mobile, which gained traction in wireless gaming by staging tournaments and offering prizes, was swallowed by InfoSpace Inc. three years ago; InfoSpace has since left the mobile gaming space. Babbs founded Atlas after serving as the president of Sorrent, which has since rebranded as Glu Mobile Inc.
Tapatap is fueled by $2.5 million in Series A funding from Gabriel Venture Partners. The company currently has a WAP-based offering, but is developing clients for J2ME and other mobile platforms, said Riedel, who serves as president and CTO. And while the company will pursue both on- and off-deck strategies, it hopes to expand virally.
“Basically, what we’re doing is mashing up user-generated content, social networking and game show logic,” Riedel said. “The most important aspect of our product in terms of distribution is people talking to others about it and making it easy for people to get it.”