Google has bought API management firm Apigee for $625, in a move that will bost the web giant’s advertising tools.
Apigee focuses on APIs, which work as ‘software middlemen’ that help developers integrate backend services with outside mobile and web-based apps.
As consumers user ever platforms to interact with brands and buy products, APIs are becoming increasingly impoartant to help centralise data for advertisers.
Marketing esearch firm Forrester predicts spending on API management will reach nearly $3 billion by 2020.
While there are many companies providing API management tools, Google says it was drawn to Apigee for its supporting features around security, testing support, and usage analytics.
“The addition of Apigee’s API solutions to Google cloud will accelerate our customers’ move to supporting their businesses with high quality digital interactions,” said Google SVP Diane Greene, in a blog post. “Apigee will make it much easier for the requisite APIs to be implemented and published with excellence.”
Currently, Apigee’s API platform is used by a number of brands, including Walgreens, which uses Apigee to manage the photo and prescription APIs that it provides to third-party developers.
Google said it now plans to use Apigee’s API management platform to bolster the Google App and Google Container engines, ultimately making it easier for these services to provide exported APIs.
Additionally, Google said it will integrate Apigee’s platform with the open-source container management tool Kubernetes.
“Looking ahead, Kubernetes will be integrated to help enterprises get better control and visibility into how their internal systems talk to one another, an additional part of deploying services,” Greene said. “As always, we’ll make sure that these capabilities are available in the public clouds and can also be used on-premises.”