Google Buys Russian Ad Company

Google has spent $140 million to acquire Russian ad company ZAO Begun as it attempts to penetrate the Russian market.

Google wants to make headway in the Russian market, where it lags behind the portal Yandex. To help it increase penetration, CNET reports that the search giant is acquiring ad company ZAO Begun for $140 million in a slightly unusual deal.

Just over 50% of Begun is currently owned by Russian site Rambler Media. It’s agreed to buy the remained from another company, Bannatyne, and then sell it for cash to Google.

Begun has 40,000 advertisers and 143,000 Russian-language sites in its network, according to Rambler.

Mohammad Gawdat, Google’s managing director for emerging markets, said:

"This agreement illustrates our commitment to investing in Russia, where online advertising is currently experiencing rapid growth. We are very excited about the opportunity to deliver more relevant search and ads to users, and provide advertisers and publishers with better advertising technology to help them succeed in their own businesses."