If approved, the deal will give the search engine a big head start in mobile phone advertising

In a move likely to give a big boost to the mobile-phone ad market, Google announced on Nov. 9 that it’s buying AdMob, a provider of mobile ad technologies, for $750 million in stock.

If approved, the acquisition would provide Google with a key set of technologies to expand its advertising business beyond search-related text ads that make up the bulk of revenue. “Google could have built this itself, but this gives them a head start,” says mobile analyst Greg Sterling of Sterling Market Intelligence. “It will thrust Google into the forefront of mobile display ads.” Google has already pushed into the wireless market by backing the development of Android, an operating system used in smartphones such as Motorola’s new Droid, carried by Verizon Wireless.

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