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Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

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Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#141

Post by robterrell »

pietrofmaggi wrote: post #122
iqster wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Motorola != Motorola Mobility. Motorola Mobility is a recent spin-off from Motorola and encompasses the original company's handset business as well as its related patent portfolio. What does Motorola do? Well ... cellular infrastructure is their core business, and they also have services/solutions for things like emergency response services (e.g. 911 in the US), law enforcement, and I think they still make walkie tal…

Motorola was split in two companies the past 4th of January. Motorola Mobility (MMI) and Motorola Solutions (MSI). The cellular infrastructure, part of MSI, was sold to Nokia/Siemes Networks. Motorola Solutions in mainly the Enterprise Mobility Business (Mobile Rugged Devices), WiFi systems, Tetra networks and a lot of other Government stuffs.

Which Moto acquired the YC company 280 North?

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#142

Post by rbanffy »

cincinnatus wrote: post #92
Jabbles wrote: post #29

Keeping Android open whilst treating their own phone manufacturing fairly will be a big challenge for Google. I hope they manage it. If done correctly the result should be a improvement in Android for all manufacturers, as the internal demands of Motorola will want to be heard, but cannot be prioritised. I am still puzzled as to how Skype cost $8billion. FYI Motorola Mobility had 24,500 patents when it was launched.…

If they have any sense they are already negotiating the sale of the physical business on to someone else. Keep the patent portfolio and recuop $6 billion of the initial outlay. Also, "open" in name only.

> Also, "open" in name only.

"open" as in:

  $ repo init -u git://android.git.kernel.org/platform/manifest.git

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#144

Post by fpgeek »

tlholaday wrote: post #73
rokhayakebe wrote: post #14

Assuming they spent the money for patents, is this the best way to resolve this issue? Would it not be easier to throw 1M a thousand time over and let developers create solutions around these patents and open source the projects?

You nées to pay the developer to create the workaround _and_ the litigator to prove in court that the workaround does not infringe.

And the time, patience and resources to survive the wave of legal attacks (including temporary setbacks) until the litigator succeeds...

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#145

Post by rbanffy »

RuadhanMc wrote: post #61

It's fascinating to see the behemoths (Apple, Microsoft, Google) positioning themselves for the fight ahead. The importance of this fight cannot be understated. Microsoft won the last fight like this and they have dominated our desktops for 15 years (OK, maybe not all HN devotees) and pocketed gazillions. Apple are ahead right now (manufacturing handsets, selling software, etc), Google are second and Microsoft are la…

> Google might be able to pull ahead of Apple for a period

That would be a huge mistake - and they know it. That's why they made it clear Motorola Mobility will be run as a separate business. It would be unbelievably foolish to hand Microsoft the Android ecosystem and Google is not known to sacrifice long-term profit.

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#146

Post by 51Cards »

haasted wrote: post #26

This is probably going to make some of the other handset manufacturers (HTC, Sony-Ericsson, etc) complain about Motorola having an unfair advantage when it comes to implementing Android. Wonder if any of them are about to regret basing their smartphone offerings on Android? The move ought to strengthen the competition among the handsets, though, as Google can now ship their "dream-version" of an Android-phone.

Apparently these are their early comments. Of course how much thought has gone into these yet is another question.

http://www.google.com/press/motorola/quotes/

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#147

Post by rbanffy »

MrScruff wrote: post #139
w1ntermute wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google doesn't (directly) make any money off of any Android handset, so I'd say that's very difficult to assess without knowledge and analysis of the impact Android has had on AdSense revenue, not to mention this money is a continuous stream of revenue following the purchase of an Android phone as opposed to a one-time up-front fee.

I'm not sure why Google would make much more in Adsense revenue on Android than they would on iOS. I think the primary issue is not conceding control of the platform their revenue is reliant on to a competitor.

> I'm not sure why Google would make much more in Adsense revenue on Android than they would on iOS

Aren't iPhone app developers using iAd?

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#148

Post by 18pfsmt »

hammock wrote: post #127
sunchild wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many patent lawyers are engineers.

Most of them come from an engineering background (at least education), you're right. It's fascinating to me to see this shift, which Google seems to be leading, from tech companies fighting over new product development - and spending gobs of cash on it - to something entirely different: fighting over patents (and again, spending gobs of cash on it). Where a company spends its cash is a good measure of where its prior…

"It's fascinating to me to see this shift, which Google seems to be leading, from tech companies fighting over new product development...to something entirely different: fighting over patents "

I thought it was Microsoft and Apple that were aggressively filing patent lawsuits, and Google and other Android partners were on the receiving end, no?

One other thing I don't see being mentioned anywhere in these threads is that, "Motorola Mobility held $5.5B in cash and deferred tax assets; this could put Google's (GOOG) real purchase price around $7B."[1]

[1]http://seekingalpha.com/article/278932-can-motorola-mobility...

Re: Google Buys Motorola For $12.5 Billion

#150

Post by rbanffy »

drivingmenuts wrote: post #75
dotcoma wrote: post #74

ok, 24,500 patents. And - I know it's old-fashioned - how many employees?

Sad to say, I don't think employees count anymore. It's all about locking up the patents. OTOH, X number of people now work for Google without having to take those quizzes.

Motorola Mobility has lots of very smart people who know Android as well as, if not better, than its creators.
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