Apple wants to dip into mobile ads – why?

I’ve just read an article from Techcrunch about Apple’s renewed interest on mobile advertising. Previously it was Admob, this time Apple is looking to buy Quattro Wireless. The rumored price is about 275 million dollars. It’s obvious that Apple want’s to be able to get a share of the burgeoning mobile ads market. With its billions of dollars in cash (about 25 billion last time I looked) waiting to get invested, it’s probably the best investment.

The first obvious reason is money / profit. Mobile advertising has the potential of becoming bigger than traditional web ads. The amount can be in the billions of dollars annually.

Another less obvious reason is that with the acquisition, Apple would be able the gain access to more data about the mobile market that includes its competitors which can enable them to create even more compelling products.

The other reason is positioning. For what? What else… to take on Google! Remember its acqusition of mapping service Placebase last year? How about the purchase of the music streaming service Lala.com last December? Steve thinks that Apple has never been in a better position than now. With lots of cash, companies still trying to recover from global recession, this is the best time for Apple to buy what it needs for positioning.