When it started out, US firm Mpowerplayer pitched its main product as 'an iTunes for mobile games' - a desktop application that allowed people to browse, sample and purchase mobile games.

It did pretty well, too. In March this year, the company boasted that it had served more than 12 million demos through the application.

However, the company has evolved into something different. It's now more focused on mobile game widgets that can be embedded in any website or social network profile.

What's more, Mpowerplayer recently raised $2.5 million in a Series A funding round to pursue this new direction.

"We're basically using the cash to help us grow in key areas, enhancing our product offering, and growing our distribution base via viral marketing and partnerships," VP of business development Joe Ariganello tells PocketGamer.biz.

"The new widget version can be shared and embedded in any website, so we're turning everyone into a viral storefront, potentially, as well as developing partnerships with everyone in the ecosystem."

Mpowerplayer is active in the direct-to-consumer market, but also as a white-label supplier of its platform to operators and publishers. It runs US carrier Sprint's Digital Lounge Arcade, for example, and also works with EA Mobile and Sega Mobile.

"We've got more deals in the works, but with the release of the widget, we see the direct-to-consumer side taking off," says Ariganello. "70 per cent of people play online, yet only 10 per cent of mobile users have ever downloaded. There's huge potential to convert some of those PC gamers into mobile gamers."

With that in mind, Mpowerplayer is striking deals with a number of big websites in the casual gaming sphere. But is the company's technology really spurring more sales of mobile games?

"We're finding the average user is playing six demos per session, and one in ten is resulting in a click to purchase," says Ariganello. "Branded games are doing well as far as conversion goes, and also the newest titles. But we see people coming back to try other kinds of games too."

Until now, the service has been focused on North America, but it seems Mpowerplayer has ambitions to cross the Atlantic, perhaps with the D2C widgets leading the charge, raising awareness in the industry of the white-label solutions.

"A lot of our traffic already comes from overseas, so it's natural to expand worldwide," says Ariganello. "We're trying to get more exposure with the carriers in Europe and create more relationships. As people see the numbers and how this actually works, we think more will come to the table to partner with us."

So how will the Mpowerplayer platform develop? Technical features are being added regularly - for example, the platform can now emulate touchscreen handsets using the mouse.

For now, the technology is focused on Java games, but Ariganello says the company is keeping an open mind about other platforms. "We'll look at any platform if it makes sense," he says.

One potential change would be to reward consumers for embedding the Mpowerplayer widget on their blogs or social networking profiles. Currently, they don't get a share of the selling price for games bought through their widget.

"Right now, it's just for the joy of sharing, but we're looking at other methods," says Ariganello. The music industry is already experimenting in this area - several firms are touting widgets that sell a band's music, and give a cut to whoever has installed the widget on their site.

So what about Mpowerplayer's original product - the desktop client? It hasn't been entirely sidelined by the shift towards a widgety Web 2.0 business model. "We're not going to leave our core base behind," says Ariganello.

"We can do different things with the desktop client, such as integrate publisher marketing into it. If they have a new game coming out, we can update the user via their desktop for example. It depends on the situation or partnership."