AOL reportedly targets mobile ad expansion with $300m Millennial Media move
Fresh from its recent $4.4bn acquisition by telecoms group Verizon AOL is proving its appetite for expansion undimmed by reportedly entering into talks to purchase mobile ad business Millennial Media for $300m.
According to Tech Crunch negotiations have been ongoing for a while but only recently came to a head following conclusion of AOL’s own multi-billion dollar takeover by Verizon, clearing the way for a possible announcement on a deal within weeks.
AOL & Verizon are both prepared to stump up a significant premium on Millenial’s market capitalisation of $217m as part of efforts to grab a larger slice of a mobile ad market which is forecast to be worth as much as $100bn by 2016.
AOL/Verizon own TechCrunch, Huffington Post and Engadget amongst other content providers, providing a ready-made platform for digital ads.
Verizon and Millenial Media have yet to respond to the rumours.