Google to buy Motorola

[Yakolev]

Any thoughts about the issue?

 

[MedicX]

You beat me to it. So, I am laying in bed, and my wife yells up, "Hey Anthony, there's something on the news about Google trying to buy Motorola". Well, knowing me, I got up and hit the net.

The first thought was that Google is trying to cover their behind even more against the likes of the patent woes that have been set before them. This however, is a lot deeper than just patent protection.

It is a smart move on their part, but, yeah, it p!$$es me off a little saying as how I am not an Android fan.

 

[Yakolev]

I completely agree that the patent issue may have been a very very big factor in this deal as Google doesn't have the best track record against Apple and Microsoft. I also wonder what this will mean for the handsets Motorola will manufacture in the future.

Could they be going for quality instead of quantity.

I guess Samsung and HTC might be pissed, I guess this could also give a boost to Windows Phone and/or even Bada.

 

[HeyCori]

It's being speculated that Google is going to use Motorola's massive patent portfolio to protect OEMs from Android patent litigation. However, I don't think Apple/Microsoft care about Motorola's patents as they are both suing the company. Even patent bloggers are cautioning about overestimating Motorola's patents. Plus I wonder if this will alienate other Android OEMs since Motorola will now get the star treatment from Google. And let’s not forget that it was only last week that Motorola was hinting at suing other Android OEMs. Overall a good deal but I think this is part of Google's larger strategy to move Android beyond the mobile market.

 

[wolf1891]

How will this factor in with the recent Motorola statements about now being open to the idea of doing WP7 phones at last? THAT is the thought that comes to mind first upon hearing this news.

 

[selfcreation]

How will this factor in with the recent Motorola statements about now being open to the idea of doing WP7 phones at last? THAT is the thought that comes to mind first upon hearing this news.

same thing jump to mind whne is aw tittles,,, so much for motorola makign wp7. i personally dont really liek Motorola , they havent made a good phone sints the RAZER . lol

 

[bear_lx]

agreed, my droid x was ok i guess, byt man was it ugly...

 

[aximtreo]

The part that worries me early on is the seemingly pairing off of the hardware and OS makers. MS with Nokia and now Motorola with Android.

A couple of good things might come from this though; Samsung and HTC may put more effort into the WP7 arena. The Focus and the Trophy have been well received and this could point to more and better hardware from OEM's.

BUT, the bottom line is MS will still make a spiff on each Mototola Android phone made and slod so they win in either case.

 

[Winterfang]

Damn, just a week after Motorola said it wanted to make Windows Phone. grrrr Google piss me off.

 

[smartpatrol]

It's no coincidence that this happened right after Motorola started making noise about patent licensing from all the other Android manufacturers. Florian Mueller even called it at the end of this post: FOSS Patents: Motorola doesn't have a license to kill Android but can cause problems

Google has no interest in becoming a device manufacturer. They've already said that they plan to operate Motorola Mobility as a separate company. This deal is ALL about the patents.

 

[HeyCori]

Google confirms it's all about the patents. I've said it before, "open and free" only applies when Google wants to protect their patents. They are just as willing to play the patent game as everyone else. And speaking personally, Motorola makes some of the worst phones on the market now.

Google CEO Larry Page explains reasoning behind Motorola acquisition (spoiler: patents)

 

[thed]

I'm sure this was mostly about patents, but I'm wondering if Google also did this to help Motorola out. It seems like most of the Android innovation these days is coming from Samsung and HTC, and sales of the Xoom tablet were awful.

AFAIK Motorola is pretty much all Android these days and Google has a vested interest in keeping them alive. Maybe Motorola will be making the next Nexus phone?

I have absolutely no data that shows Motorola could be struggling, it's just a thought that I had after reading about the story.

 

[Winterfang]

but I'm wondering if Google also did this to help Motorola out.

If just for the patents. Google is one of the most evils companies in the world.

 

[UpTownDC]

Google purchasing Motorola Mobility really means nothing in the long run. Motorola is still being sued by Microsoft, that doesn't go away because of the purchase. Google would have to settle but I doubt if that would ever happen. It would open a huge can of worms on Google's part if they settled with Microsoft. This ordeal will play out in the courts for years to come. Too much EGO and the lost of revenue on Google's side to admit that they have been in the wrong for all of these years.

 

[thed]

If just for the patents. Google is one of the most evils companies in the world.

I did say I thought it was mostly for the patents. I just think there's a little more to it. If they were only interested in patents, then why didn't they make more of an effort to buy the Nortel patents, which ended up selling for much less than $12.5 billion.

Granted, they may not have been worth as much as Moto's patents, but you'd think Google would've tried harder, instead of placing joke bids based on mathematical constants.

Plus, I think calling Google one of the most evil companies in the world based on that is a little extreme. A lot of companies try to buy up patents. It's more a symptom of the crazy, broken patent system. I'm not saying Google is a saint, but I think Google trying to get a monopoly by buying up hardware manufacturers is more worrying than them buying up patents.

 

[HeyCori]

Lets keep in mind that Google only bought Motorola Mobility, which has been operating as an independent company since January of this year. The question is, how many patents did Google really get their hands on? While there's probably some cross licensing deal that gives Google access to all of Motorola's patents, I'm guessing only a handful of those are relevant to any present or future patent battles. Furthermore, companies don't seem concerned about Moto's patents as they've already taken Motorola to court. And Microsoft did invite Google to buy the Norvell (not Nortel) patents, so companies are willing to work with Google. Google just wants to give the middle finger to anyone who doesn't bow down to them.

 

[Winterfang]

Motorola has 17,000 patents I think.

 

[Yakolev]

I guess we also could see Motorola being the first vendor of the Chrome OS on tablets + all future Android OS updates being first released on Motorola phones.

I do hope Google actually allows them to try out the Windows Phone platoform, I loved the Milestone (European Version) form factor and something similar with Windows Phone should be plainly awesome.

 

[3migo]

Damn, just a week after Motorola said it wanted to make Windows Phone. grrrr Google piss me off.

Would you really want to see a Motorola WP7 phone? I have yet to see a Motorola Android device that isn't garbage.

 

[theefman]

I guess we also could see Motorola being the first vendor of the Chrome OS on tablets + all future Android OS updates being first released on Motorola phones.

I do hope Google actually allows them to try out the Windows Phone platoform, I loved the Milestone (European Version) form factor and something similar with Windows Phone should be plainly awesome.

Moto didnt exactly do a good job with the Xoom, less than 500,000 sold and alread moving on to the Xoom 2 so having the first Chrome tablet probably wont mean much. Plus Chrome OS + android on tablets are going to be taken down in a big way by Windows 8, BUILD will be an eye-opener.