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Another day, another acquisition in the mobile advertising space, which after a slack year in 2009 is set to regain momentum this year. After Google bought AdMob and Apple snapped up Quattro Wireless, mobile browser leader Opera Software has acquired AdMarvel, with the aim of monetizing its Opera Mobile and Opera Mini browsers.

The Norwegian software house will pay $8m for its US-based prey, plus $15m if certain financial targets are met during the next 24 months. AdMarvel works with mobile publishers and operators to manage ad delivery to handsets, and analyze their effectiveness, and it allows publishers to target users by country, device type or operator. It will now combine its monetization and analytics services with the Opera browser and widget platform, offering a complete package to cellcos.

Opera's browser is widely installed, and is used by about 50m phones, and it has reached down into midrange handsets as these have gained web capabilities, and as competition has mounted on high end smartphones. But the firm needs to increase the revenues it can generate from a browser that is free to end users (though licensed by some vendor or operator partners). As many manufacturers create their own browsers, including long time Opera partner Nokia for Series 60, the new acquisition will also help Opera shift its attention more strongly towards operator sales.

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