Google made a major purchase on November 9, acquiring mobile advertising company AdMob for $750 million, furthering the company’s continued push into mobile advertising. The AdMob purchase will enable Google to serve lucrative display ads, to cell phones and other mobile devices. This purchase gives a clear indication of the trend toward mobile advertising.

Types of Mobile Advertising

“We see mobile as a huge growth opportunity for us,” Susan Wojcicki, vice president of product management at Google, said in an interview. “We see an opportunity working with AdMob to really accelerate our efforts in an important industry for Google.” Founded in January 2006, AdMob has some high-profile customers such as Ford, Procter & Gamble, and Coca-Cola.  AdMob claims to have served more than 125 billion ad impressions.

The deal seems to provide benefits to users and advertisers alike. Users should see more free mobile applications , since developers will be able to subsidize their products through effective mobile advertising. Advertisers, on the other hand, should benefit too; Google will be able to serve more highly targeted, relevant ads to mobile users through the combination of AdMob’s mobile publisher network with the search giant’s network of advertisers. Furthermore, combining the advertising technologies of AdMob and Google is likely to yield better ad performance on mobile apps and websites.

Admob's Worldwide Ad Requests

AdMob sells ads on many kinds of phones, including iPhone and Google’s own Android phones. Google is now primed to become a one-stop shop for companies interested in search and display on regular websites and cellphones.
Google hopes to finalize this deal in the next few months. In the meantime, the company continues to make smart purchases that make advertising more flexible and more efficient than ever before.

It should be interesting to see the future developments in mobile advertising.

Paul Mosenson