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Apple to buy mobile ad company Quattro Wireless - report

Apple is poised to announce that it has acquired mobile advertising outfit Quattro Wireless for $275 million.

Apple is set to announce the purchase of mobile advertiser Quattro Wireless for $275 million, according to Kara Swisher at AllThingsDigital. Apple's announcement may come as early as Tuesday.

Quattro's advertising network includes iPhone, Android, and other Smartphone apps as well as thousands of mobile websites. The Waltham, Mass.-based company has a client list containing names such as Disney, Visa, and Ford.

Quattro is a direct competitor to AdMob, a company that Apple had reportedly courted before it was ultimately acquired by Google early in November for $750 million.

The FTC has been actively reviewing the AdMob acquisition due to concerns that Google could effectively monopolize the mobile ad market by leveraging its existing AdSense and DoubleClick programs.

Apple's acquisition of Quattro Wireless can be seen as an attempt to win back some of the market it lost when AdMob was purchased by Google.

The Google/Apple rivalry is poised to heat up even more with the Google's forthcoming announcement of the Android-powered Nexus One, a phone that Google plans on selling directly via the web. Today, it was reported that user interest and satisfaction in the Android OS was approaching that of the iPhone.