Leftronic

Market position

Described in press coverage as a leading provider of real-time business data and analytics dashboards, but as a small player: it had raised only $500,000 and, per Forbes commentary, was unlikely to have gained large traction in an increasingly crowded data visualization market, making an exit attractive.

Positioned around real-time updating, large-screen-oriented dashboards, a broad library of pre-built service integrations plus a simple custom-metrics API, and template-driven drag-and-drop creation. Post-acquisition, the combination with AppDirect added identity, billing and application management alongside KPI monitoring, which AppDirect described as the only platform to find, buy, manage and monitor business apps in one location.

Technology

A high-performance, secure, web-based platform that aggregates metrics from more than 60 external services and from custom sources submitted via a simple API, then renders them in real-time, template-based dashboards built with a drag-and-drop editor and optimized for large-screen display. Features included multi-user access, IP whitelisting, email alerts and configurable styling.

Go-to-market

Direct sales of self-service dashboard plans to businesses, supported by promotional offers (for example, a month-long campaign bundling a free HDTV, mini-computer, TV mount and on-site setup with qualifying dashboard plans). After the acquisition, distribution was intended to expand through AppDirect's network of app marketplaces, while Leftronic stated it would also pursue opportunities outside the AppDirect ecosystem.

Businesses of all sizes needing to monitor operational KPIs, including enterprises; named customers include Cisco, Nike, HomeAway, Yale University, Twilio and Vodafone. After the acquisition, AppDirect marketplace providers, their internal teams, resellers and customers were additional intended users. The current website content targets tech-focused readers seeking statistics.

Geography

Headquartered in San Francisco. Its customer list included organizations based outside the United States, such as Vodafone.

History

Launched in 2010 with seed funding from Y Combinator as part of the Summer 2010 batch. Over the following four years it built out a real-time dashboard platform and acquired customers across multiple industries. On November 10, 2014, AppDirect announced its acquisition of Leftronic — the third company AppDirect had bought after jBilling (2012) and Standing Cloud (2013) — with the entire Leftronic team joining AppDirect and the Leftronic brand continuing as an independent entity.

Risks & controversies

Forbes noted the data visualization space was increasingly crowded and expressed skepticism that Leftronic had achieved significant traction despite naming large customers; the company had raised only $500,000 before exiting.