Believe me when I tell you that there was not a mobile advertising vendor on Monday who wasn’t abuzz with the news of Google purchasing AdMob.  So let me add my congratulations to Omar and his team on this deal.  While we can all give our soundbytes on how this “validates the industry” (and for $750 million, it certainly does), I’d like to address what works in this deal and what it means for the rest of the mobile advertising industry.

First, the combination of Google and AdMob is a perfect fit.  Google is the behemoth of self-service, performance-based advertising and AdMob is the king of long-tail advertising in mobile.  Google’s purchase of AdMob extends its reach deep into Apple iPhone applications, and supplements their portfolio with hard-to-develop expertise in ad serving and targeting on mobile. It strengthens Google’s position in in-app Android advertising, perfectly timed with Android 2.0 launch on Verizon, and making Google a credible monetization partner for  Android app developers.

This investment in mobile signifies to advertisers that this is a viable channel and should help kick-start some of those advertisers still on the fence regarding their mobile initiatives.  However, what is still wide open is the untapped potential of premium brand advertisers. The acquisition of AdMob has everything to do with performance advertising and does nothing for premium publishers that want to attract brand advertising dollars.

While premium publishers have sometimes started their mobile ad sales through partnerships with ad networks, the time is coming for them to take their inventory in hand.  Premium publishers need solutions that allow them to sell directly, provide innovative offerings to advertisers, and maximize their revenue.  Premium brand advertisers will not be taking the self-service route.  They want their brands associated with premium content and to engage advertisers in new and unique ways through innovative ad experiences.  

Google’s acquisition of AdMob does not address the premium market.  What else does the Google AdMob deal mean for Premium Publishers? Check out the column from Crisp’s Tom Limongello on Mobile Marketer today.