Vodafone and Telefónica go into mobile ads

Vodafone and Telefónica have taken stakes in a mobile phones advertising company, as they look for ways to fight back against the incursion of internet search groups into their territory.

The two rival mobile operators have made an undisclosed investment in Amobee, which has begun rolling out its advertising serving platform for mobile search, mobile games and text messages.

Both companies have begun trials of Amobee's technology - Telefónica through its O2 subsidiary in the UK and Vodafone in Spain, Greece and the Czech Republic - but said they had decided to take minority stakes to improve their understanding of a potential future growth source.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com