Back when paid apps drove downloads by going free, FreeAppADay was a key distribution channel.

In the era of free-to-play, however, it's been rethinking its strategy when it comes to hooking up a mass audience with app and game distribution.

Part of this strategy has now been revealed with the news that FAAD's developer ICS Mobile has signed a deal with major Hollywood talent agency ICM Partners.

It handles some little known names such as Samuel L. Jackson, Katie Holmes, Megan Fox and Beyonce.

The pitch

The deal will see A-hit stars from movies, music and sports bringing their social muscle to the new AppXchange platform.

This is a combined web and app approach - sort of a meta-social network and community, which uses and encompasses current social networks - that's expected to launch on iOS in September and on Android later in 2013.

The point of the deal will be to formalise the push that celebrities, as well as industry experts or emerging community mavens, can bring to the app ecosystem.

"At ICM Partners we always want to ensure that our talents remain consistently connected with their audience with the latest social networking innovations," commented ICM Partners' SVP of digital strategy Keyvan Pemani.

"With a rapidly growing section of the population spending more time consuming apps, we felt that entering into a partnership with a company that catered to that audience made perfect sense as part of our digital expansion strategy".

Winning the win-win

ICS Mobile's CEO Joe Bayen added he thinks AppXchange will 'crack the app discovery puzzle in a meaningful and novel way'.

"By using crowdsourcing in combination with A-list celebrities provided by ICM, we've found ourselves in the unique position of being able to recommend the right app to the right user at the right time," he said.

You can sign up for more information at the AppXchange website.