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Mar 21
2010
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Rates for mobile search ads will exceed those for PC search ads thanks to the growing popularity of smartphones. Speaking in an analyst briefing, Google's engineering VP Vic Gundotra said the number of Google searches via mobile has increased fivefold over the past two years. Although he declined to predict when the crossover will take place, Gundotra says mobile ad rates have already risen "dramatically".
"Google has bet big on mobile," says Gundotra. "We hope and believe that there's a chance that cost per click of mobile ads could exceed desktop in the future.”
His comments echo those of CEO Eric Schmidt, who said last month that Google is now a "mobile first" company. The firm has stepped up its mobile efforts in recent months, acquiring mobile ad network AdMob and launching its first mobile hardware, the Nexus One smartphone. Gundotra says Google is optimising its full range of services, not just search, for mobile devices. He claims more than 50m people are now using Google Maps from their mobiles.
