InMobi's global ad network reaches 691M monthly unique users; India third biggest country in its user list

Bangalore and San Francisco-based mobile ad network InMobi claims that its mobile ad network reaches 691 million unique users per month across 165 countries via mobile devices (covering more than 40 per cent of smartphone users globally). This means more than 16 per cent rise in the number of consumers from 578 million in January this year.

Interestingly, India comes third (with 49 million users) among the countries which have the largest number of monthly unique users for InMobi, after the US with 156 million (which is the clear leader) and China with 63 million users. Africa (37 million), South Korea (29 million) and the UK (28 million) are other countries among the top six.

Naveen Tewari, CEO and founder of InMobi, said, "This figure highlights the reach now available on the InMobi network across smartphones and tablets. The number (691 million) represents the anonymous profiles we have built on our user-driven ad network, which enables us to offer advanced audience targeting solutions to our customers.

While the network reaches over a billion users (through billions of daily ad impressions across mobile devices and mobile web), 691 million unique users reflect the sample size of InMobi's anonymously compiled user data.

"We anticipate that the introduction of Mozilla's Firefox operating system and Ubuntu OS will increase the rapid adoption of smartphones. With current growth projections, we expect to reach a billion users within 18-24 months," added Tewari.

Set up in 2007, InMobi's platform enables brands, publishers and developers, to engage global consumers through mobile advertising. The company is backed by investors including SoftBank Corp, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Sherpalo Ventures. In 2011, it had struck the largest deal (till date) in the mobile internet space in India with $200 million commitment from Japan's SoftBank. InMobi has raised around $215.5 million till date and has offices in India, the UK and the US (as well as in other global locations). The company currently employs 800 people and has customers in 165 countries. It has recently expanded its footprint in rest of Asia, Europe and Australia.

In March this year, the company also launched an Android app store distribution platform called App Publish. The free-to-use platform enables Android developers to publish their apps across global app stores with just a few clicks. The launch also marked the integration of the app distribution capabilities that the company got through its acquisition of Metaflow Solutions, a UK-based mobile app management and distribution solutions firm acquired in July 2012.

Earlier this year, InMobi also joined the likes of Microsoft, Apple, Google, Samsung, Facebook and Amazon to secure a place in the MIT Technology Review's list of 50 Disruptive Companies for 2013. Prior to that, the company had acquired Overlay Media, a UK-based mobile data analytics startup for an undisclosed amount.

Competition

Mumbai-based mobile ad network Vserv claims that its platform is doing more than 1 billion ads a day for some time now. This means it is publishing 30 billion ads per month, exactly the double since we spoke to the company in May 2012. It is also eyeing new territories to expand its global presence. With its operations already in place in India, the US and Europe, the company is now strengthening its foothold in African and the South-east Asian markets.

Mobile internet firm One97 Communications is also set to foray into the mobile advertisement sector with the impending launch of its mobile ad network called Adworks. The ad network, which is scheduled to be launched soon (was supposed to happen in March this year), is currently in private beta.

(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)