Google's $12.5B acquisition of Motorola Mobility now official

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Google has announced that its $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility is completed and approved, officially bringing the search giant into the smartphone hardware business.

"I'm excited to announce today that our Motorola Mobility deal has closed," Google Chief Executive Larry Page wrote on the company's official blog on Tuesday. "Motorola is a great American tech company that has driven the mobile revolution, with a track record of over 80 years of innovation, including the creation of the first cell phone."

With the takeover complete, Sanjay Jha has resigned as CEO of Motorola, and has been replaced by Dennis Woodside, formerly Google's vice president of Americas Operations. Woodside's succession as Motorola Mobility CEO was first announced in February.

Though Google now officially owns Motorola Mobility, it plans to operate its acquisition as a separate business that will remain a licensee of Android. Google has said that will allow other Android-based smartphone makers, like Samsung and HTC, to compete without giving Motorola an unfair advantage.

The deal was cleared after months of regulatory approval, which concluded last week with a rubber stamp from the Chinese government. China was the final jurisdiction to grant approval after the merger was greenlit by the European Commission and U.S. Department of Justice.

Google


Google first announced last August that it had reached an agreement to buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. Outsiders have speculated that Google made the purchase to gain ownership of Motorola's extensive mobile patents, though Google officials have contended that the deal was instead for Motorola's products.

Motorola has seen its share of the worldwide mobile device market continue to slide as the smartphone race has increasingly become a showdown between Apple and Samsung. Data released last week by research firm Gartner showed that Motorola's share of mobile device sales slid from 2.1 percent in the first quarter of 2011 to 2 percent in the first quarter of 2012.

Along with Motorola's 17,000 patents, Google will also acquire the company's ongoing legal disputes, including a patent infringement case with Apple. The legal battle between Apple and Motorola already spans across multiple lawsuits in various countries.

Page asserted last August that "anticompetitive" patent litigation from Apple and Microsoft forced Google to buy Motorola Mobility. He argued that the acquisition of Motorola would increase competition by strengthening Google's patent portfolio, protecting the platform from litigation from Microsoft and Apple.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 53
    freerangefreerange Posts: 1,597member
    Google, the new evil. Stealing from others then buying an arsenal to protect their theft.
  • Reply 2 of 53
    joindupjoindup Posts: 80member
    "We didn't go into the Search business." - Steve Jobs
  • Reply 3 of 53
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Great news for Windows Mobile. They'll be the biggest beneficiary of this deal.

    Not to mention Motorola's shareholders who got more than it was worth.
  • Reply 4 of 53
    dick applebaumdick applebaum Posts: 12,527member


    Let the MMI layoffs begin...


     


    Let the OEM Android desertions begin...


     


    I see this as a big opportunity for Microsoft to pick up a large portion of the Android smartphone business...

  • Reply 5 of 53
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member


    If Page calls Apple's suits as 'anticompetitive' I wonder what he calls Moto's FRAND violating tactics. Business as usual?

  • Reply 6 of 53
    antkm1antkm1 Posts: 1,441member
    Uh, Apple and many other companies "acquire" companies all the time to gain control of patents. Siri, emoji, and countless others. Didn't they purchase exclusive rights to that liquid metal for use in future products? How about that Israeli chip manufacturer? Let's even go back as far as the GUI from Xerox? And they didnt aquire that one ;)

    It's common-place in this industry. Just this time it came to a very multi-$B sum and two very large companies. So spare me the evil Google malarkey. And don't give me the "big brother" speech either. Apple gathers just as much personal data that google does.
  • Reply 7 of 53
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by antkm1 View Post

    Uh, Apple and many other companies "acquire" companies all the time to gain control of patents.


     


    They don't steal from others first and buy second.


     


    Quote:



    And don't give me the "big brother" speech either. Apple gathers just as much personal data that google does.



     


    {citation needed}

  • Reply 9 of 53
    antkm1antkm1 Posts: 1,441member
    To answer the personal data gathering policies of apple. Note the bit about becoming part of a human cent-iPad ;)

    [=http://www.apple.com/privacy/][/]

    [=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703983704576277101723453610.html][/][/SPOILER]

    Happy reading.
  • Reply 10 of 53
    bullheadbullhead Posts: 493member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum View Post


    Let the MMI layoffs begin...


     


    Let the OEM Android desertions begin...


     


    I see this as a big opportunity for Microsoft to pick up a large portion of the Android smartphone business...



     


    How will Microsoft do that?  Window Phone is a complete and total failure.  The OS is fugly and totally unusable not to mention several generations behind both iOS and Android.  Scrolling text to the right...LOL.

  • Reply 11 of 53
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    bullhead wrote: »
    How will Microsoft do that?  Window Phone is a complete and total failure.  The OS is fugly and totally unusable not to mention several generations behind both iOS and Android.  Scrolling text to the right...LOL.

    I also agree that Windows Mobile will benefit from this. I wouldn't say that it's going to completely supplant Android, but it will gain share - mostly from Android. Several factors:

    1. Google is now competing with its licensees. The licensees have no guarantees that they will be on a level playing field with Motorola.
    2. While Google doesn't charge license fees for Android, Android licensees have to pay Microsoft about $10-15 per handset. That's probably comparable to what they'd pay to license Windows Mobile, so there's no financial disincentive to switching, at least as far as licensing is concerned.
    3. In today's litigious environment, lawsuits have to be considered. Microsoft has a history of backing its licensees, Google does not. In fact, Google has gone out of its way to distance itself from any legal matters, which would make licensees nervous.
    4. There are a number of legal decisions that have gone against Android. There is a risk that Android would suffer from additional injunctions that could interfere with their business. I'm not aware of any such issues with Windows Mobile.
    5. Your characterization of Windows Mobile as a complete and total failure is grossly premature. There are a number of very positive reviews of Windows Mobile. Furthermore, Microsoft has a history of incremental improvements and turning an inadequate product into an adequate one over time.

    I think you're going to see that your bluster is way off the mark in about 6 months.
  • Reply 12 of 53
    dick applebaumdick applebaum Posts: 12,527member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by bullhead View Post


     


    How will Microsoft do that?  Window Phone is a complete and total failure.  The OS is fugly and totally unusable not to mention several generations behind both iOS and Android.  Scrolling text to the right...LOL.



     


    That's why I distinctly specified Android smartphone.


     


    Some OEMs are already paying MS to use Android on their smartphones... why not just pay MS to use Windows 8 and, as a [very big] side benefit, not have to compete with your OS provider who also is a smart phone provider.

  • Reply 13 of 53
    jd_in_sbjd_in_sb Posts: 1,600member
    I thought Google would back out and pay the breakup fee. I guess they still think buying Motorola is a good idea.
  • Reply 14 of 53
    Well, you can't say they weren't warned. This is their worst business decision since Android. Time will tell which is the most expensive mistake.
  • Reply 15 of 53

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post





    I also agree that Windows Mobile will benefit from this. I wouldn't say that it's going to completely supplant Android, but it will gain share - mostly from Android. Several factors:

    1. Google is now competing with its licensees. The licensees have no guarantees that they will be on a level playing field with Motorola.

    2. While Google doesn't charge license fees for Android, Android licensees have to pay Microsoft about $10-15 per handset. That's probably comparable to what they'd pay to license Windows Mobile, so there's no financial disincentive to switching, at least as far as licensing is concerned.

    3. In today's litigious environment, lawsuits have to be considered. Microsoft has a history of backing its licensees, Google does not. In fact, Google has gone out of its way to distance itself from any legal matters, which would make licensees nervous.

    4. There are a number of legal decisions that have gone against Android. There is a risk that Android would suffer from additional injunctions that could interfere with their business. I'm not aware of any such issues with Windows Mobile.

    5. Your characterization of Windows Mobile as a complete and total failure is grossly premature. There are a number of very positive reviews of Windows Mobile. Furthermore, Microsoft has a history of incremental improvements and turning an inadequate product into an adequate one over time.

    I think you're going to see that your bluster is way off the mark in about 6 months.


     



    Google has stated they will not give motorolla any special treatment. Second google is an Advertising company why would they risk cutting out potential eyes. They were also as part of the deal as speculated by china Supposed to keep android free and open for the next 5 years. So spare me with the Competing with their own OEMS they can't and won't shoot their self in the foot. This acquisition was solely for patents in less then three years motorola mobility will change hands again less patents. More evidence motorola is solely for patents the company does not have a large footprint outside of the United States. It would be moronic for google to purchase a company with the intention of doing vertical integration for android when that company has a comparatively small international footprint.
  • Reply 16 of 53

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Dick Applebaum View Post


    Let the MMI layoffs begin...


     


    Let the OEM Android desertions begin...


     


    I see this as a big opportunity for Microsoft to pick up a large portion of the Android smartphone business...



     


    You got it.


     


    But before the huge exodus, we'll see a lot of new Google ads trying to convince their vendors that Motorola makes no difference and this is only for patent litigation -- which it MIGHT be, after all.


     


    It seems that being a third party creator of Android phone is going to look as smart as having Samsung make your tablets. Sure -- you guys aren't going to be taking notes while we submit our apps -- are you?

  • Reply 17 of 53
    Wasn't this move supposed to ensure peace and security across the Old Republic?
  • Reply 18 of 53
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member

    <b id="user_internal-source-marker_0.9754378523211926" style="font-family:'Times New Roman';line-height:normal;font-size:medium;"><span style="font-size:15px;font-family:Arial;font-weight:normal;vertical-align:baseline;">Google has stated they will not give motorolla any special treatment. Second google is an Advertising company why would they risk cutting out potential eyes. They were also as part of the deal as speculated by china Supposed to keep android free and open for the next 5 years. So spare me with the Competing with their own OEMS they can't and won't shoot their self in the foot. This acquisition was solely for patents in less then three years motorola mobility will change hands again less patents. More evidence motorola is solely for patents the company does not have a large footprint outside of the United States. It would be moronic for google to purchase a company with the intention of doing vertical integration for android when that company has a comparatively small international footprint.</span>
    </b>

    That, of course, assumes that:
    1. Google is telling the truth
    and
    2. The situation doesn't change in the future

    Given Google's history, I would be very skeptical of either of those assumptions - particularly since Google has a history of favoring one phone over another when releasing reference phones.
  • Reply 19 of 53
    gazoobeegazoobee Posts: 3,754member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by antkm1 View Post



    Uh, Apple and many other companies "acquire" companies all the time to gain control of patents. Siri, emoji, and countless others. Didn't they purchase exclusive rights to that liquid metal for use in future products? How about that Israeli chip manufacturer? Let's even go back as far as the GUI from Xerox? And they didnt aquire that one image

    It's common-place in this industry. Just this time it came to a very multi-$B sum and two very large companies. So spare me the evil Google malarkey. And don't give me the "big brother" speech either. Apple gathers just as much personal data that google does.


     


    I think you're missing the point.  The acquisition, and what Google has publicly stated about it are pretty much in opposition to everything they stand for and everything they have previously stated about what their intentions are both for open source in general and mobile specifically. Thus the hypocrisy. 


     


    Also, over the years, both Google and Apple have set themselves up, and marketed themselves as being, companies that try to "do the right thing" in regards their customers.  In Google's case they actually even have that "do no evil" mantra. But while Apple has never been caught violating their core principles at all, Google is in fact operating almost completely at odds with what it previously stated it's core principles were.  


    Thus "Google is evil now." 

  • Reply 20 of 53
    bullheadbullhead Posts: 493member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post





    I also agree that Windows Mobile will benefit from this. I wouldn't say that it's going to completely supplant Android, but it will gain share - mostly from Android. Several factors:

    1. Google is now competing with its licensees. The licensees have no guarantees that they will be on a level playing field with Motorola.

    2. While Google doesn't charge license fees for Android, Android licensees have to pay Microsoft about $10-15 per handset. That's probably comparable to what they'd pay to license Windows Mobile, so there's no financial disincentive to switching, at least as far as licensing is concerned.

    3. In today's litigious environment, lawsuits have to be considered. Microsoft has a history of backing its licensees, Google does not. In fact, Google has gone out of its way to distance itself from any legal matters, which would make licensees nervous.

    4. There are a number of legal decisions that have gone against Android. There is a risk that Android would suffer from additional injunctions that could interfere with their business. I'm not aware of any such issues with Windows Mobile.

    5. Your characterization of Windows Mobile as a complete and total failure is grossly premature. There are a number of very positive reviews of Windows Mobile. Furthermore, Microsoft has a history of incremental improvements and turning an inadequate product into an adequate one over time.

    I think you're going to see that your bluster is way off the mark in about 6 months.


     


    So by your logic, people will buy cloner Windows Phones because Google bought Motorola?   Never mind all the vendors which have cloner Windows Phones on the market right now, which are not selling because Windows Phone is garbage.  I think you are going to see that your bluster is WAY off the the mark....forever.

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