The deal was first announced in August and now it is official. Google"s CEO Larry Page has posted word on the company"s official blog that it has closed its deal to acquire smartphone and tablet maker Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion. In the blog post, Page reminded the public that Motorola actually released the first cell phone. He stated:
We all remember Motorola’s StarTAC, which at the time seemed tiny and showed the real potential of these devices. And as a company who made a big, early bet on Android, Motorola has become an incredibly valuable partner to Google.
The announcement also said that Motorola"s current CEO, Sanjay Jha, will step down and be replace by Dennis Woodside. He was most recently President of the Americas region at Google.
Google has said in the past that its acquisition of Motorola was in part due to wanting to acquire the many patents the company owns. However, it"s possible Google could use Motorola as a way to launch its own branded smartphone and tablet hardware. So far, Google has said that Motorola will be run as if it is a separate company and will have to obtain a license to use Google"s Android operating system like any other smartphone maker.
Page ended his blog post by saying:
It’s a well known fact that people tend to overestimate the impact technology will have in the short term, but underestimate its significance in the longer term. Many users coming online today may never use a desktop machine, and the impact of that transition will be profound--as will the ability to just tap and pay with your phone. That’s why it’s a great time to be in the mobile business, and why I’m confident Dennis and the team at Motorola will be creating the next generation of mobile devices that will improve lives for years to come.