Google has cleared the last regulatory hurdle in the way of its US$12.5bn acquisition of US phone and set-top box maker Motorola Mobility after Chinese authorities conditionally approved the deal.
The approval came after the search giant got the…
Google has cleared the last regulatory hurdle in the way of its US$12.5bn acquisition of US phone and set-top box maker Motorola Mobility after Chinese authorities conditionally approved the deal.
The approval came after the search giant got the go-ahead from regulators in Europe and the US.
However, Chinese authorities ruled that Google can only acquire the group if it keeps its Android operating system free for other device makers for at least five years.
The Motorola Mobility deal will see Google compete with other handset manufacturers that make devices running Android. The OS software also runs on handsets built by South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and Taiwan’s HTC.
Meanwhile, there has been speculation suggesting Google could later offload the set-top box part of Motorola Mobility after closing the acquisition. The New York Post tabloid newspaper reported earlier this year that Google had hired Barclays Capital and Qatalyst Partners to consider a sale. Both Google and Motorola Mobility declined to comment.
Separately, industry rumours point to Google initially trying to acquire Motorola Mobility without its set-top box element, but that this proposal was refused by activist investor Carl Icahn, who was seen as a key driver in a full sale of Motorola Mobility. Icahn has since sold down his stake in Motorola.
Motorola’s set top box business was reportedly last shopped to potential buyers in late 2009, when it was valued at around US$4.5bn. Back then, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs were reported to have been hired in an unsuccessful attempt to find buyers.
