MobSmith

MobSmith, initially known as NearbyAd, was an ad-tech firm established in 2010 by co-founders Saket Saurabh and Ingrid Lestiyo. The company positioned itself in the mobile advertising sector, providing a platform for creating and deploying rich media advertisements. This service allowed advertisers and publishers to construct interactive and dynamic ad campaigns for mobile platforms.

The core of MobSmith's business was its self-service platform that enabled the creation of rich media ads incorporating features like video and interactive elements. This addressed a growing market need for more engaging mobile advertising beyond static banners. The platform allowed for detailed personalization and targeting, using criteria such as user location and demographics, and provided analytics to measure campaign performance. MobSmith's business model centered on providing these tools to advertisers and publishers, integrating with existing ad networks to deploy the campaigns. The company secured $575,000 in funding over two rounds from investors including Blumberg Capital and XG Ventures.

A significant milestone in MobSmith's history was its acquisition by Rubicon Project in May 2012. The deal, reportedly valued at $10 million, marked Rubicon Project's strategic entry into the mobile advertising market, aiming to leverage MobSmith's technology to expand its offerings. Following the acquisition, MobSmith's platform and team were integrated into Rubicon Project's operations. Rubicon Project itself later merged with Telaria in 2020 to form Magnite, a large independent sell-side advertising platform.

Keywords: MobSmith, NearbyAd, mobile advertising, rich media ads, ad-tech, Saket Saurabh, Ingrid Lestiyo, Rubicon Project acquisition, mobile ad platform, interactive advertising, ad campaign management, advertising analytics, Blumberg Capital, XG Ventures, sell-side platform, Magnite, mobile marketing, ad creation tools, targeted advertising, dynamic ads