Google Asks Mobile Companies For Help With FTC Over Admob Deal

Google is reaching out to mobile companies for help in getting their proposed Admob acquisition cleared by the FTC. Specifically, they’re asking select companies to write letters in support of the deal, which Google will then forward to the FTC.

We spoke with one mobile advertising company this afternoon that received the request from Google. The company was asked to write their thoughts on “Do you think mobile advertising is going to keep growing, and that Google’s acquisition of Admob won’t hurt your business or decrease competition in the mobile market?”

Last week Bloomberg reported that the FTC had reached out to Admob competitors about the deal. Our source that was contacted by Google says they were also contacted by the FTC months ago about the deal. Since then, silence.

Oddly enough, we had also heard recently that Google was actually looking for ways to back out of the Admob deal, which clearly isn’t the case based on this new information today. But there is speculation that Apple will change their SDK to require application developers to use Quattro Wireless if they want to include ads in their iPhone/iPad apps. That change would likely be paired with an argument that consumer safety requires Apple to filter these ads.