ValueClick Inc. said it acquired mobile advertising network company Greystripe Inc. for about $70 million in cash. The purchase is the latest in a string of large companies buying independent companies to get a spot in the mobile advertising space.
Google Inc. (GOOG) in late 2009 paid $750 million to buy AdMob, followed by Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) reported $275 million purchase of Quattro Wireless. Opera Software later purchased AdMarvel.
Greystripe has a proprietary advertising platform that delivers rich media to more than 30 million devices through more than 2,500 application titles and mobile websites across all major mobile platforms. San Francisco-based Greystripe said it has relationships with a variety of Fortune 500 advertisers.
“Greystripe accelerates ValueClick’s move ‘up the marketing funnel’ with brand advertisers and gives ValueClick Media immediate scale and expertise in the large and fast-growing mobile ad market,” said Jim Zarley, CEO of ValueClick. “We see great traffic and revenue synergies between ValueClick and Greystripe, and we’re looking forward to working closely with the Greystripe team to take full advantage of the opportunities that this combination offers.”
The purchase leaves Millennial Media as one of the few independent mobile advertising networks remaining.