MoPub, the mobile advertising startup founded by former AdMob and Google employees, has launched a real-time bidding auction place for mobile ads. Called MoPub Marketplace, it is a self-service platform that connects app publishers with ad buyers.

MoPub points to its optimization algorithms as a market differentiator, saying they are designed to maximize revenue for publishers across both iOS and Android devices. It is also touting its transparency, as compared to the “black box” publishers come up against with ad networks.

"Publishers didn't know which ads are effective and with no control over the type of ads consumers receive," said Jim Payne, CEO and co-founder of MoPub. "This matters considerably to the top tier publishers we are working with who are concerned with brand protection as well as ad performance."

Publishers can choose whether to expose their application name to bidders on the Marketplace.

A Growing Force

The Marketplace launches as more vendors push real-time bidding technology into the mobile environment. Turn has partnered with Nexage  to provide RTB for mobile advertising inventory through its media-buying platform. In August TubeMogul entered into a RTB venture for mobile video ads with Nexage. Earlier this year DataXu launched a mobile RTB platform called DX Mobile.

All of these offerings were preceded by the launch of OpenRTB Mobile at the beginning of the year, a committee of the OpenRTB consortium, dedicated to increasing the adoption of real-time bidding standards in mobile advertising. Members include Nexage, PubMatic, Smaato, DataXu, Fluent Mobile, [x+1]; and ad network Jumptap.