Microsoft to acquire mobile ad company ScreenTonic

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday it agreed to acquire European mobile phone advertising company ScreenTonic to gain a foothold in the rapidly growing business for placing ads on mobile phones.

Microsoft, the world's largest software maker, did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. Paris-based ScreenTonic is one of the first companies in Europe to develop a platform to manage and place ads on the mobile Internet.

ScreenTonic also serves as an advertising agency for companies looking to develop marketing campaigns on phones. Investors in the start-up include venture capital firm 3i (III.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and I-Source Gestion, according to ScreenTonic's Web site.

Mobile phone advertising is still a nascent industry compared to Web advertising, but it is an area being targeted by Microsoft and Web rivals Google Inc. (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Yahoo Inc.

(YHOO.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz)

Advertising on the Internet, especially pay-per-click ads alongside search results, erupted into a multibillion industry within a few years and online companies hope mobile phones will follow a similar growth trajectory.

"The acquisition of ScreenTonic will be part of our long-term strategy to deliver ad experiences that map to the (mobile Internet)," said Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president at Microsoft's online services group, in a statement.

ABI Research forecast global mobile marketing and advertising will increase sixfold to $19 billion by 2011 from an estimated $3 billion by the end of 2007.

Google, the Web search leader, has built a dominant online advertising business around its search engine and strengthened its position by agreeing to acquire online ad supplier DoubleClick for $3.1 billion last month.