Google Buys Russian Ad Company

by admin July 22, 2008 at 5:49 pm

Google has spent $140 million to acquire Russian ad company ZAO Begun as it attempts to penetrate the Russian market.

Google wants to make headway in the Russian market, where it lags behind the portal Yandex. To help it increase penetration, CNET reports that the search giant is acquiring ad company ZAO Begun for $140 million in a slightly unusual deal.

Just over 50% of Begun is currently owned by Russian site Rambler Media. It’s agreed to buy the remained from another company, Bannatyne, and then sell it for cash to Google.

Begun has 40,000 advertisers and 143,000 Russian-language sites in its network, according to Rambler.

Full article: digitaltrends.com