Mobile advertising platform InMobi, which has received more than $200m in funding from SoftBank, would be valued at up to $2bn in the deal.
Diversified internet company Google has begun acquisition talks with India-based mobile advertising platform InMobi in a deal that would provide an exit to telecommunications firm SoftBank, the Economic Times reported today.
Founded in 2007 as a text message-based search platform called mKhoj, InMobi pvoted to mobile advertising and now offers a suite of products ranging from app distribution and monetisation to targeted advertising.
InMobi has so far raised more than $220m in venture funding. SoftBank invested $200m in the company in 2011 and a further $5m in December 2014, while Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Sherpalo Ventures provided series A and B funding, and Mumbai Angels invested at seed stage.
A price has not been agreed for the prospective acquisition, but InMobi had reportedly planned to raise its next funding round at a $2bn valuation.
Google intends to conduct technology due diligence on InMobi before negotiating commercial terms, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter.
The companies originally began talks in September and subsequently broke down, before the deal was resurrected in the face of competitive pressure on mobile from social network Facebook.
