Google Buys Motorola Mobility – Armed and Ready to move forward in mobile communications in a big way.

Google Buys Motorola Mobility – Armed and Ready to move forward in mobile communications in a big way.

I have ten thoughts on the strategic importance of this very key acquisition and the brilliance of Larry Page taking an aggressive position forward.

1. Google missed out on the 6000 strong Nortel patents and acquires over 17000 Motorola patents. They actually bid “pi” or $3.14159 Billion. The so-called “Rockstar Bidco group” of Apple, Microsoft, Research In Motion, Sony, Ericsson AB and EMC. Google is finding itself having to protect the company with all these patent infringements.
2. Google wants to be in the game and as access to the internet has expanded to mobile devices the past decade, so too has the demand for even faster wireless data connections. The future is LTE and 4G. Mobile search and mobile payment tools are the fastest growing market segments. Remember when Steve Jobs went ballistic when he saw the first Google android prototype?
3. The “Google Phone” will become a reality and with their clever Android software platform the missing link was control of the hardware platform. The Motorola acquisition makes this happen.
4. The Android cool factor disappears as it becomes mainstream. Now that Google is a legitimate manufacturer the software developers may not have that open source playground anymore. Android will become proprietary.
5. Google now has a set top platform to expand its Google TV or even Googleflix offering. Search now embeds itself even further into the consumer’s home. Remember Motorola was a leader in wireless Ethernet routers and adsl modems back in the day.
6. Samsung and HTC are going to be worried as Google moves from partner to competitor status.
7. I think Nokia will get purchased by Microsoft and I think Microsoft may buy RIM. Rim patents are worth at least $10 Billion based on the recent Nortel and Motorola patent evaluations.
8. Google is taking a long term view to having the resources and platforms to protect itself from Microsoft and Apple.
9. Google is investing into hottest technologies are Cellphone payments, location technology, automobile-Internet, QR codes and 4G/LTE.
10. Patents, patents and more patents but in the end the hardware is key, if not Google could have bought InterDigital that has over 8000 patents for a lot less.