"Business Insider" (http://www.businessinsider.com/adidas-gives-up-on-apples-iads-because-st...) says Adidas has apparently backed out of Apple's iAd mobile advertising program because Apple CEO Steve Jobs was "being too much of a control freak.

According to one industry exec, Adidas decided to cancel its iAds after Apple rejected its creative concept for the third time. In an effort to dial up ad quality, Apple has taken more control over iAds than any other program in the industry, including making the actual ads themselves, notes the "Business Insider." And, as the "Wall Street Journal" noted in August (http://www.businessinsider.com/apples-iads-already-pissing-some-people-o...), this has caused some stress between Apple and ad agencies.

Ads combine the emotion of TV advertising with the interactivity of Internet advertising, according to Apple CEO Steve Jobs. Apple has iAd commitments for 2010 totaling over US$60 million, which represents almost 50 percent of the total forecasted US mobile ad spending for the second half of 2010, says Jobs.

He adds that iAd, which is built into iOS 4, allows users to stay within their app while engaging with the ad, even while watching a video, playing a game or using in-ad purchase to download an app or buy iTunes content.

Developers who join the iAd Network can incorporate a variety of advertising formats into their apps. Apple will sell and serve the ads, and developers will receive 60% of the iAd Network revenue, which is paid via iTunes Connect. iAds require iOS 4.