Business hub
Fee schedule, publishing model, and the Tim Culpepper × 9Bit Studios partnership.
The schedule
Standalone development fee — Six payments, May 1 → August 31
Tim Culpepper agrees to pay Penny Platt (9Bit Studios LLC) $5,000 in six bimonthly installments. The first payment may be made as any combination of installments by May 1.
| Due | Amount | Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| May 3, 2026 Any combination by May 3 | $1,333 | Kickoff & Foundation |
| May 15, 2026 | $666 | M1 — Architecture |
| June 1, 2026 | $1,000 | M2 — Core Build |
| June 15, 2026 | $666 | M3 — Polish & Beta |
| July 1, 2026 | $1,000 | M4 — Submission |
| August 31, 2026 | $335 | M5 — Launch Support |
| Total | $5,000 | — |
| August 31, 2026 | — | 🚀 App Store launch |
Math note: payments sum to exactly $5,000. The final August 31 installment was adjusted from a draft figure of $333 to $335 so the total resolves cleanly.
Collated schedule
All payments including addenda — $6,230
The standalone $5,000 development fee plus Addendum 1 (App Store Design & Marketing, $750) and Addendum 2 (Landing Page Setup, $480).
| Due | Amount | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Upon execution | $375 | App Store Design & Marketing deposit (Addendum 1) |
| May 3, 2026 | $1,333 | Kickoff & Foundation |
| May 15, 2026 | $666 | M1 — Architecture |
| May 25, 2026 | $480 | Landing Page Setup (Addendum 2) |
| June 1, 2026 | $1,000 | M2 — Core Build |
| June 15, 2026 | $666 | M3 — Polish & Beta |
| July 1, 2026 | $1,000 | M4 — Submission |
| August 31, 2026 | $335 | M5 — Launch Support |
| August 1, 2026 | $375 | App Store Page Delivery balance (Addendum 1) |
| Total | $6,230 | — |
| August 31, 2026 | — | 🚀 App Store launch |
Note: Notion AI Business seats ($480) are a separate client expense paid directly to Notion, due May 25, 2026.
Cash flow breakdown
How the payments are weighted
$1,999 · 40%
Two payments funding kickoff and architecture. Front-loaded to cover the heaviest design and foundation work.
$1,666 · 33%
Two payments covering core build and polish/beta. Sustained development cadence through the middle of the engagement.
$1,335 · 27%
Submission payment plus a smaller launch-support installment timed to coincide with App Store submission. App Store launch: August 31, 2026.
What the fee covers
Build, not equity
✓ Included
- Full v1 iOS build (SwiftUI + SwiftData)
- Brand system (Variations A & B)
- App Store assets (screenshots, copy, icon)
- TestFlight beta + boomer-tester coordination
- App Store submission & launch
- 30 days post-launch support
✗ Separate from this fee
- Equity in 9Bit Studios LLC — Tim's 20% founding stake is separate; vests over 24–36 months with 6-month cliff
- Post-launch revenue split — handled under the publishing model (75/25), not the build fee
- Apple Developer enrollment — Tim's $99/yr Tim Culpepper (organization account)
- Domain costs — getdewdrop.com (Tim owns), dewdropapp.io recommended (~$50/yr)
Related
Want to see how revenue flows after launch?
The principle
"Nobody gives up what they built. Everyone gains what they couldn't build alone."
Tim Culpepper keeps 100% ownership of the Dewdrop IP. 9Bit Studios doesn't buy or absorb it — instead, Tim Culpepper licenses Dewdrop to 9Bit Studios for publishing, marketing, and distribution. In exchange, 9Bit Studios provides the platform: Apple Developer Organization account, Oksana intelligence, shared design system, brand channels, and go-to-market machinery.
How money moves
The revenue flow, end to end
App Store collects gross revenue
Users pay $4.99/month or $39.99/year. Apple takes 15–30% per Small Business Program rates and remits net revenue to the 9Bit Studios developer account.
Net revenue splits 75 / 25
Of net revenue received by 9Bit Studios, 75% is paid out to Tim Culpepper as IP owner; 25% is retained by 9Bit Studios as a platform services fee.
9Bit Studios' 25% distributes by member equity
The platform services fee is distributed to all three 9Bit Studios members by equity share. Tim therefore receives both the 75% IP owner share and his 20% slice of the 25% platform fee — roughly 80% of total Dewdrop net.
Member math
What each member receives per $100 of net Dewdrop revenue
Tim Culpepper
$75 IP share + $5 of the 25% platform fee (his 20% equity)
Penny · Pennylane Media
55% of the 25% platform fee
Arthur · Always a Monster
25% of the 25% platform fee
Per $100 of net revenue · Totals to $100.00
Illustrative scenarios
Monthly revenue at three subscriber levels
Conservative projections based on $4.99/month pricing, 30% Apple cut in year one, and the 75/25 publishing split. Year-two Apple cut drops to 15% under the Small Business Program, increasing all member shares.
Studio split distributes per equity (Penny 55% / Arthur 25% / Tim 20%). Tim's "receives" column already includes both his IP share and his equity slice.
Why this structure
Three things the model preserves
1. IP ownership stays clean
Tim Culpepper owns Dewdrop forever. The license to 9Bit Studios is terminable, scoped to publishing rights, and revertible if the partnership ends. No buyout, no IP transfer.
2. Platform value is shared
Tim, Penny, and Arthur all benefit from every member product because the platform fee distributes by equity. PillDrop and FeedDrop will work the same way — and so will Arthur's eventual game titles.
3. Build fees are separate
The $5,000 Dewdrop build fee compensates Penny for development labor. Equity and revenue splits are about long-term ownership and platform value. The two never get mixed up.
The two relationships
Member of the studio · Owner of the IP
Tim wears two hats simultaneously, and the partnership is designed to keep them clean and independent.
Tim · 9Bit Studios LLC
- 20% equity, vesting over 24–36 months with 6-month cliff
- Title: Chief Intelligence Officer
- 10–15 hours/week strategic engagement
- Receives equity slice of every member product's platform fee
- Voting rights per the Operating Agreement
- Access to Oksana platform, design system, brand channels
Tim Culpepper
- 100% ownership of Dewdrop, PillDrop, FeedDrop IP
- Licenses Dewdrop to 9Bit Studios for publishing
- Receives 75% of net Dewdrop revenue as licensor
- License is terminable and revertible — IP returns on exit
- Free to publish other titles outside the studio if desired
- Transitioning from TX sole prop to UK private limited company
Why the separation matters: if the studio relationship ever ends, Tim retains his business and Dewdrop in full. If Tim pivots away from Dewdrop, Tim's 9Bit Studios membership is unaffected. Neither side can hold the other hostage to a single deliverable.
Vesting schedule
Equity vests over time, with a 6-month cliff
Tim's 20% equity grant vests over 24–36 months from the LLC formation date, with a 6-month cliff. Penny's 55% is fully vested at formation (representing 18 months of pre-formation sweat equity). Arthur's 25% follows the same vesting structure as Tim's, beginning when Arthur formally joins.
Linear monthly vesting after the cliff. If Tim departs before the cliff, all unvested equity returns to the LLC. After the cliff, vested shares are retained regardless of departure reason.
IP license scope
What the license grants — and what it doesn't
✓ Granted to 9Bit Studios
- Right to publish Dewdrop on the App Store under the 9Bit Studios developer account
- Right to market and distribute the title through studio channels
- Right to use the Dewdrop name and brand assets for marketing
- Right to integrate Dewdrop with the Oksana intelligence platform
- Co-marketing rights with other 9Bit Studios titles
✗ Retained by Tim Culpepper
- Underlying IP, source code, design system specific to Dewdrop
- Right to terminate the license (with notice period)
- Right to publish derivative works (PillDrop, FeedDrop) on same terms
- Right to publish unrelated titles outside the studio
- All trademarks, brand IP, and customer relationships
Operational arrangement
How the day-to-day works
Apple Developer Account
Dewdrop publishes under the 9Bit Studios LLC organization account. The App Store listing shows "9Bit Studios" as developer; "Tim Culpepper" attribution appears in the app description and on getdewdrop.com.
Domains
getdewdrop.com stays Tim-owned for
user-facing marketing. dewdropapp.io
recommended for legal/privacy/support URLs (App Store-stable).
dewdrop.9bitstudios.io is this
business hub.
Brand co-marketing
Studio channels (9bitstudios.io, LinkedIn, Instagram) actively promote Dewdrop. Tim Culpepper retains his own brand presence and can cross-promote PillDrop / FeedDrop independently.
Exit provisions
What happens if the partnership ends
Either party may terminate the publishing license with reasonable notice (typically 120 days). On termination:
- Dewdrop returns to Tim Culpepper in full — source, brand, customer list, all derivative IP. 9Bit Studios retains no residual claim on the title.
- Vested equity stays with Tim — all 9Bit Studios shares vested as of the termination date are retained.
- Unvested equity reverts to the LLC — any shares not yet vested at the termination date return to the studio for redistribution.
- Cooperation period — both parties commit to a clean transition: App Store account migration, customer communication, refund handling, and brand asset transfer.
Governing documents
The agreements behind the partnership
Each numbered template is executed via DocuSign and stored in the secure member document vault. This page references them; it does not host the executed contracts themselves.