Google and Motorola Mobility have received approval from US and European antitrust authorities for their US$12.5bn deal, but regulators also hinted that they would continue to monitor the patent related aspects of the transaction.
The companies are also…
Google and Motorola Mobility have received approval from US and European antitrust authorities for their US$12.5bn deal, but regulators also hinted that they would continue to monitor the patent related aspects of the transaction.
The companies are also still waiting for clearance from China, Israel and Taiwan, according to reports.
The European Commission (EC) was the first regulator to approve the transaction yesterday, concluding that the deal “would not significantly modify the market situation in respect of operating systems and patents for these devices.”
Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said that “upon careful examination, this transaction does not itself raise competition issues. Of course, the Commission will continue to keep a close eye on the behaviour of all market players in the sector, particularly the increasingly strategic use of patents”.
The EC concluded that “it is unlikely that Google would restrict the use of [mobile operating system] Android solely to Motorola, a minor player in the European Economic Area, as compared to operators such as Samsung and HTC.”
But the regulator also warned that the clearance decision “is without prejudice to potential antitrust problems related to the use of standard essential patents in the market in general. However, any such issues would not arise specifically as a result of the proposed transaction.”
The antitrust division of the US Department of Justice (DoJ) announced its clearance decision just hours after the EC. It said it concluded that the deal was unlikely to substantially lessen competition.
Motorola Mobility’s patent portfolio includes 17,000 patents and around 7,000 pending patents.
The DoJ noted that Motorola Mobility had a “long and aggressive history” of looking to capitalise on its intellectual property rights, as shown by its disputes with companies like Apple and Microsoft.
It added: “As Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility is unlikely to materially alter that policy, the division concluded that transferring ownership of the patents would not substantially alter current market dynamics.”
Citing a source close to the situation, Reuters reported that Chinese regulators have until 20 March to make a decision on the deal or start a third phase of its review.
In a blogpost, Google’s deputy general counsel Don Harrison said that the company was waiting for decisions from a few jurisdictions before the deal could be closed.
