Released in the iOS app store in September 2015, UpDog has been downloaded and used in more than 60 countries around the world.

When Apple declared they would be making significant changes that would impact apps in a major way, my partner and I discussed the future of UpDog. We took a hard look at the data to determine the cost of keeping it operational at a base level based on projections about Apple’s update. We predicted Facebook would release an update shortly after Apple, which meant we would need more development, since UpDog was tied in to Facebook. That meant, we would need to update the code to satisfy Apple’s update and then again to meet Facebook’s. All the while, resubmitting the app through the iOS App Store for approval, finding new bugs (it seems like when you add or fix something, a different part of the code breaks since it’s all interconnected). In addition to the mandatory and ongoing updates, there were still substantial modifications we wanted to see within the app to shift its focus away from reviews and toward user experience. Based on the data we decided to intentionally let UpDog go.

To clarify, it wasn’t a funding issue; we turned down investment from 3 separate sources. It wasn’t a lack of interest or passion, we had awesome users from various parts of the globe; I continue to receive requests to make it live again. It was not a lack of passion on our end. This was purely the decision that made the most sense to us.

I still own the code and have been contacted about selling it, which I’m is an option I would certainly consider.