Mountain View, Calif. - Google (NASD: GOOG) announced on Friday that it will acquired Russian contextual advertising service ZAO Begun from Rambler Media for $140 million.

Google said its acquisition of the six-year-old Begun will give advertisers in Russia a broader network of sites to advertise on, while publishers will benefit from a wider set of ads to run on their sites.

"Google is very committed to giving Russian users, advertisers and partners the best possible service and experience," said Mohammad Gawdat, managing director of emerging markets at Google.

"This agreement will result in better search results and more relevant advertising for our Russian users and publishers."

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter.

Related Links:
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/pressrel/20080718_begun.html

http://begun.ru/begun/english