Thanks, iPhone: Google buys mobile advertiser AdMob for $750 million

Google today announced it will acquire mobile display advertising company AdMob for $750 million.

"For publishers of mobile Web sites and applications, this deal will mean better products and tools and more effective monetization of their content, allowing them to focus more on their users and less on how to generate revenue. For advertisers who want to reach users when they are engaged with mobile content, this deal will bring better, more relevant ads and greater reach. It will also mean more interesting, engaging ad formats. Last, but certainly not least, we believe users will benefit from this deal: through more mobile content and through better mobile ads that deliver useful information," vice presidents of Product Management and Engineering at Google Susan Wojcicki and Vic Gundotra posted in Google's Official Blog today.

AdMob gained a good deal of media exposure thanks to its continuous stream of market pseudo-statistics which were pulled exclusively from its mobile advertising network. While not indicative of the mobile market as a whole, the company at least provided frequent behavioral metrics on iPhone/iPod and Android, the platforms most widely supportive of AdMob's in-app and mobile-formatted Web display ads.

"We launched the first iPhone ad units focused on the web and quickly added the capability to run ads in applications. Now with the addition of excellent devices from Palm, Nokia, RIM, and plethora of Android powered smartphones, we have all the preconditions necessary for what will be a tidal wave of mobile browsing and app usage. But let there be no mistake. Our business, and the mobile industry in general, owes Apple a debt of gratitude," AdMob's Founder Omar Hamoui said today.