Google to acquire Motorola

Google and Motorola Mobility have announced an agreement in which Google will acquire Motorola's mobile division for 12.5 billion. This purchase equates to $40 per share of Motorola stock which is 63% over the closing price on Friday.

Google sees this as a strategic move to compete against Apple, which is dominating market share despite Android's growing popularity. Google feels that it needs to build better synergy between software and hardware and to do so requires a hardware arm which they hope will result in a better overall experience for the end user. With the Android platform receiving tremendous support from several big manufacturers like Samsung, LG and Sony Ericsson, we are curious to see how this move will affect their relationship with Google.

Google's CEO Larry Page stated that through this partnership Google and Motorola plan to create amazing user experiences with the benit of the Android consumer in mind.

The deal will be subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close by late 2011 or early 2012. The full press release follows:




source - Motorola