Google triples deal spending to $4.2B in 2014 first half

Google Inc., more than tripled spending on acquisitions in the first half of the year to $4.2 billion, as the Internet Company ramps up investments to expand its services.

The world’s largest online advertiser spent $3.2 billion for thermostat company Nest Labs Inc. in February and an additional $1 billion on other purchases in the first six months of 2014, the Mountain View, California-based Web company said in a filing .

That’s up from $1.3 billion for the same period a year ago, according to a previous filing.

The 2014 numbers exclude the more than $1 billion that Google has announced it’s paying for home-camera company DropCam Inc. and satellite service Skybox Imaging Inc.; those deals didn’t close in the first half.

Google’s scale of deal spending is climbing as it works to bolster its core search-advertising business and extend its reach into new markets such as mobile, telecommunications and driverless cars. The company’s smaller acquisitions this year have covered everything from drones to video advertising.

“These acquisitions generally enhance the breadth and depth of our expertise in engineering and other functional areas, our technologies, and our product offerings,” the company said in the filing.