• Seattle Times et al., Friday, April 9, 2010 1:59 PM

Along with clearing the way for Google's acquisition of AdMob, what could Apple's new iAd mobile ad system mean for the world of online media and marketing? For one, the continued rise of the app at the expense of search marketing, according to Steve Jobs, who insists that smartphone owners are getting all of their information through apps, so search ads are not as effective.

"Search is not where it's at" on phones, Jobs told reporters -- including one from The New York Times -- on Thursday. "People are not searching on a mobile device like they are on the desktop." Moreover, "Google is increasingly finding itself at odds with Apple in markets like mobile phones, Web browsers and operating systems," adds The Times.

Regarding Jobs' presentation on Thursday, The Seattle Times notes: "The ambition and scope of iAd was surprising ... It's a huge potential market for the company if users accept the advertising that may soon be woven deeply into their Apple devices."

What's more, "Users may benefit from more free apps supported by ads ... Maybe that will offset any resentment about immersive ads on a mobile device for which they pay monthly fees to use, and temper app price escalation that came with the iPad."

Making life more difficult for mobile ad platforms, Mobile Beat suggests: "By building the technology into the operating system, Apple should be able to offer richer integration with the device and with apps, compared to other mobile ad services."

Writes The Register: "When announcing iPhone OS 4.0, Steve Jobs said that Apple has 'no plans to become a worldwide ad agency' -- but it appears that he's planning to do just that ... Jobs' goal: to get one billion ad impressions per day by the end of the year."

Meanwhile, Google's AdMob deal is presently being held for review by the FCC, as rumors circulate that thpurchase could be rejected.

Apple, for its part, made its mobile advertising ambitions clear at the beginning of the year when it acquired Quattro Wireless for $275 million. Similar to AdMob, Quattro specializes in ads that run within apps.

On Thursday, Jobs also confirmed long-running rumors that he'd tried to acquire AdMob, "but Goolge snatched it away."

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