Google cleared for Motorola purchase after receiving Chinese regulatory approval
Google and Motorola Mobility both revealed on Saturday that they have received Chinese regulatory approval for their proposed merger and expect to soon close on the deal.
After receiving permission in February to move ahead with the merger from the European Commission and U.S. Department of Justice, Google had been waiting for China as the final jurisdiction to sign off on the transaction. Chinese law requires that companies doing sales of more than $63 million domestic or and $1.5 billion globally must seek approve from its Ministry of Commerce.
?We are pleased the deal has received approval in all jurisdictions,? Motorola Mobility told Bloomberg in a statement that confirmed approval in China. ?We expect to close imminently.?
Google said simply that its stance on the deal "has not changed" and that it is looking forward to completing the acquisition.
According to the report, China's Ministry of Commerce declared that Google must keep its Android mobile operating system free and open for the next five years as a condition of the approval.
Google announced last August that it had agreed to buy Motorola for $12.5 billion in a move that would "supercharge the Android ecosystem" while allowing Motorola to continue to run as a separate business. Google CEO Larry Page also revealed that the acquisition was meant to "better protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies."
Along with Motorola's cache of over 17,000 patents, Google will also pick up Motorola's legal disputes. As such, Google will face off against Apple once the deal is completed. Apple and Motorola are currently engaged in a complicated patent battle across multiple countries. Most recently, Apple succeeded in having a case against Motorola and HTC consolidated.
After receiving permission in February to move ahead with the merger from the European Commission and U.S. Department of Justice, Google had been waiting for China as the final jurisdiction to sign off on the transaction. Chinese law requires that companies doing sales of more than $63 million domestic or and $1.5 billion globally must seek approve from its Ministry of Commerce.
?We are pleased the deal has received approval in all jurisdictions,? Motorola Mobility told Bloomberg in a statement that confirmed approval in China. ?We expect to close imminently.?
Google said simply that its stance on the deal "has not changed" and that it is looking forward to completing the acquisition.
According to the report, China's Ministry of Commerce declared that Google must keep its Android mobile operating system free and open for the next five years as a condition of the approval.
Google announced last August that it had agreed to buy Motorola for $12.5 billion in a move that would "supercharge the Android ecosystem" while allowing Motorola to continue to run as a separate business. Google CEO Larry Page also revealed that the acquisition was meant to "better protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies."
Along with Motorola's cache of over 17,000 patents, Google will also pick up Motorola's legal disputes. As such, Google will face off against Apple once the deal is completed. Apple and Motorola are currently engaged in a complicated patent battle across multiple countries. Most recently, Apple succeeded in having a case against Motorola and HTC consolidated.
Comments
Moto really deserved this. They had plenty of chances to develop and market products that would be very competitive with Apple. But... Moto just couldn't think along the same lines as Apple. Lead, follow or get bought out.
Paraphrasing Oscar Wilde, there are only two tragedies in life: one is, not getting what you want; the other.....
WTF? Two American companies. Why do they bother getting Chinese approval? Are they running it by Luxemburg also?
If Google/Moto want to do business in China, they need to grease the wheels...
S_rew them. If they ban over something they should have no say over, then we just ban some of their companies. They need to sell to us way more than we need to sell to them.
The US step in to protect the funds of 2 private international companies that happen to have headquarters in the US? Not the kind of escalation anyone wants...
Google needs China and Europe approval before buying Motorola. The whole point of Google buying Motorola is about those patents. It does not have anything to do with Chinese or European companies at all. Just Can't believe some people do not understand this basic knowledge.
Suppose Google sues Apple over the infringement of Motorola-owned patents in the major markets like the US/Europe/China, they need to gain approval for Google's purchase of Motorola in the first place; otherwise no government will enforce Google's Motorola patents.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alexander Stuy
WTF? Two American companies. Why do they bother getting Chinese approval? Are they running it by Luxemburg also?
Well seeing as Microsoft was successful in obtaining an injunction banning the importation of Motorola Android devices into the US, Google needs other markets to sell their stuff in.
You really need to get past the 1960s.
Business is global. Apple, for example, has more than 1/2 of its business outside of the U.S. The fact that you are a U.S. company does not give you the right to violate local laws. You need to ensure compliance with countries where you do a significant amount of business.
In the end, though, I predict that this move will be the thing that saves Windows Mobile:
1. The license fees for Windows Mobile are probably no greater than what Android licensees must pay Microsoft, anyway.
2. Google refuses to indemnify licensees over patent infringement. Microsoft, OTOH, defends its OS.
3. Android licensees will see that they are licensing an OS from their competitor. Anyone who thinks that Motorola/Google won't have an advantage when it comes to Android are kidding themselves.
OTOH, think of the increased penetration this gives Google into your home. The set-top box that connects your TV to the cable company or satellite dish will be Google's to control. Anyone want to bet that they won't be tracking your viewing habits? I could also see other items 'updated' to include Android. For example, your home phone could have a small Android screen on it giving Google another way to track you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alexander Stuy
S_rew them. If they ban over something they should have no say over, then we just ban some of their companies. They need to sell to us way more than we need to sell to them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cyberzombie
The US step in to protect the funds of 2 private international companies that happen to have headquarters in the US? Not the kind of escalation anyone wants...
You both are totally clueless as to what this is all about.
i suppose all h#ll will break lose because of this... /sarcasm
Which would basically allow Google to penetrate into the living room pretty easily by simply including Android in cable modems.
It looks like this might not happen as content providers aren't too happy with Google and actively shunning Motorola modems.
Google might just have to sell the cable modem business:
http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/7/2851646/google-to-sell-motorola-cable-box-unit-rumor
Quote:
Originally Posted by jragosta
OTOH, think of the increased penetration this gives Google into your home. The set-top box that connects your TV to the cable company or satellite dish will be Google's to control. Anyone want to bet that they won't be tracking your viewing habits?
Your viewing habits are being tracked now. Cable and satellite companies and yes even AppleTV already know what you're watching every minute. They know if you change channels during commercials, indicating an active viewer, can "see" when people are probably home, your likely political leanings, whether you probably have children and loads of other information that becomes even more valuable when they combine with known subscriber info and data from other sources like smartphone use.
...and you're worried about what an ad-provider under the watchful eye of the FTC knows about you? The government already determined they'd keep an eye on them. I'd be just as concerned about those that aren't under a microscope as Google is. Other than insiders none of us really know what Verizon, Apple, Duetche-Telecom or a DirectTV has collected and shares about us. It's already understood why Google would want to follow you. What's the interest of the others?
I think it's no coincidence that Google recently announced plans to give partners "early access" to Android. That's exactly what they need to do to give Motorola a massive advantage over competitors. Everybody will be allowed into the early access program for political reasons but Motorola will obviously have better access than everyone else. The idea that they're going to run it as a separate company was already absurd - Motorola is losing money so Google is essentially subsidising it by hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter by acquiring it - but this move makes it even harder to say they're separate. Motorola will have access to Android while it's in development.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
Your viewing habits are being tracked now. Cable and satellite companies and yes even AppleTV already know what you're watching every minute. They know if you change channels during commercials, indicating an active viewer, can "see" when people are probably home, your likely political leanings, whether you probably have children and loads of other information that becomes even more valuable when they combine with known subscriber info and data from other sources like smartphone use.
...and you're worried about what an ad-provider under the watchful eye of the FTC knows about you? The government already determined they'd keep an eye on them. I'd be just as concerned about those that aren't under a microscope as Google is. Other than insiders none of us really know what Verizon, Apple, Duetche-Telecom or a DirectTV has collected and shares about us. It's already understood why Google would want to follow you. What's the interest of the others?
Hell, if we ever needed any evidence that you're a paid Google shill, then there it is.
You may as well provide us with percentage levels of your share after this utterly ridiculous comment.
"Everybody is watching you, including Apple, so you may as well trust Google."
That 'ad-provider under the watchful eye of the FTC' has committed numerous privacy offences in the past few years alone.
And you're advocating we just go ahead and trust them?
Fark.
You.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
Your viewing habits are being tracked now. Cable and satellite companies and yes even AppleTV already know what you're watching every minute. They know if you change channels during commercials…
Blatant lies. Nielsen households remain the only ones tracked.
Really?
I wonder why then the ad industry still relies on data based on a (relatively small) sample of households and their viewing habits to spend the $68B that they annually do. Why haven't the cable companies monetized the heck out of it!?
As you've been told, this is absolutely false. The cable company has no way of knowing what I'm watching.
But even if they did, that gives them one piece of information. It's not like Google who knows more about you than your parents.
I've been saying that since the acquisition was announced. I'm glad someone is paying attention.
Quote:
Originally Posted by anantksundaram
Really?
I wonder why then the ad industry still relies on data based on a (relatively small) sample of households and their viewing habits to spend the $68B that they annually do. Why haven't the cable companies monetized the heck out of it!?
What makes you believe they still rely on just small viewer samples like they did "back in the day", and what makes you think your viewing habits aren't being monetized?
The evidence of today's tracking is pretty easy to see. As an example, if you use either Verizon FIOS or DirectTV you can search the most-viewed shows right now, fast proof that they know what each viewer is watching at that moment. You can see your own history, proof they also keep a record of your viewership. Now couple FIOS TV/Internet info with smartphone tracking via your Verizon Wireless service (you could substitute similar services supplied by Apple iPhones/iPads and Apple TV, or the ATT/DirectTV combo) They know your address and contact numbers, when you leave for work, where you work, your income, when or whether you leave for lunch, when you get home from work, whether anyone else stays home during the day watching TV or using the internet, what time your children get home from school. . .
but you're really concerned about Google. They're only a few of the trees in the forest.
EDIT: The current most-viewed show is SportsCenter, with the ID network in second and MSNBC third. That's in my market area in Central Florida.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GTR
Hell, if we ever needed any evidence that you're a paid Google shill, then there it is.
You may as well provide us with percentage levels of your share after this utterly ridiculous comment.
"Everybody is watching you, including Apple, so you may as well trust Google."
That 'ad-provider under the watchful eye of the FTC' has committed numerous privacy offences in the past few years alone.
And you're advocating we just go ahead and trust them?
Fark.
You.
I never said you should trust them, but good try anyway.
What I did say is that doesn't make everyone else trustworthy.