• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, August 10, 2011

Mobile marketing firm Velti has introduced a Web-based platform called 5ml that allows brands and agencies to create rich media ads and mobile content using the HTML5 programming language.

Through the software's drag-and-drop interface, Velti promises marketers a simple way for non-technical users to build HTML5-based ads and sites comparable to native apps.

The 5ml service can be used independently or as part of the company's flagship mGage platform for running mobile campaigns.

Mobile ad networks are increasingly adding rich media tools as part of their service offerings to help streamline the fragmented mobile ad process. To that end, mobile ad network InMobi acquired mobile rich media provider Sprout earlier this month.

Other ad networks and rich media companies have struck up partnerships. ABI Research last month predicted that over 2.1 billion mobile devices will have HTML5 browsers by 2016, up from just 109 million in 2010.