Google Inc, the most-used Internet search engine, may introduce a mobile phone as the company seeks to tap a market of 2 billion mobile users, an analyst said.
A Google phone would encourage more people to use services such as Internet search, e-mail, maps and instant messaging, Marianne Wolk, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group, said in a note to clients on Wednesday, citing online reports.
The Mountain View, California-based company would likely work with a partner to manufacture the phone, Wolk said in the note. The Spanish news site Noticias.com this week reported Google was working on a phone, citing the head of Google's unit in Spain.
The Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Friday that Google was developing mobile phone software, citing people familiar with the matter.
"Mobile is an important area for Google, and we remain focused on creating applications and establishing and growing partnerships with industry leaders to develop innovative services for users worldwide," the company said in an e-mailed statement. "However, we have nothing further to announce."
Meanwhile, Google, seeking to extend its advertising software into new markets, bought Adscape Media Inc, a privately held company that sells ads in video games.
The terms of the purchase weren't disclosed, Google said on Friday on its Web site.
The acquisition gives Google a new kind of ad revenue and a way to expand beyond the Web.
US sales of ads in video games are expected to grow to US$732 million by 2010 from US$56 million in 2005, Boston-based Yankee Group Research said.
The acquisition is more about buying Adscape's technology than the company itself, said Mike Goodman, an analyst at Yankee Group.
Adscape is smaller than market leaders Massive Inc, Double Fusion Inc and IGA Worldwide, he said.
Adscape, based in San Francisco, has developed a way to place ads in games that are suited to players' ages or sex, where they live and the time of the day. Game publishers get a commission when the ads are featured in their games.
The purchase follows Microsoft Corp's acquisition of in-game advertising company Massive Inc last May. Microsoft, developer of the Xbox game console, is trying to boost the percentage of revenue it gets from ads.
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