Since the introduction of the iPhone in June 2007, mobile apps have become one of the most transformational and disruptive developments in the history of information technology.
Picture this: I was at the Technology Pioneers gathering at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January 2008. There I was, clutching my Blackberry, when we went around the room introducing ourselves. When AdMob introduced themselves I harrumphed under my breath about the folly of mobile advertising and thought that they didn’t belong in the same legion as hard core technology companies like the rest of us. It’s a good thing nobody asked me my opinion because a few years later AdMob was acquired by Google GOOGL -0.09% (who outbid Apple AAPL +0.32%) for $750 million. Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP Group, the global advertising and public relations giant, was sitting next to me and he made a beeline for AdMob after their introduction.
