LinuxQuestions.org - Google Keeps ‘Vast Majority’ Of Motorola Mobility Patents In Sale To Lenovo

Quote:

Motorola Mobility is being sold to Lenovo, in a deal worth $2.91B. Google is divesting itself of the handset division it purchased for $12.5B in 2011, but it will keep some of the assets — including patents.

“Google will maintain ownership of the vast majority of the Motorola Mobility patent portfolio, including current patent applications and invention disclosures,” says Motorola Mobility CEO Dennis Woodside. “As part of its ongoing relationship with Google, Lenovo will receive a license to this rich portfolio of patents and other intellectual property. Additionally Lenovo will receive over 2,000 patent assets, as well as the Motorola Mobility brand and trademark portfolio.”

When Google purchased Motorola Mobility, much of the discussion swirled around whether it was buying it simply to own a hardware pipeline on which to deliver its Android juice — or whether it wanted patents for protection. The answer, as is typical, lay somewhere in the middle. Though the Motorola patents never turned out to by incredibly effective winning solo battles against Google’s patent enemies, they did work as a part of a larger tactic which has seen Google aligning itself via cross-licensing with OEMs like Samsung.

More at TechCrunch...

so: Motorola's total cost to Goog in 2011 was $12.5B: - $3.2B Moto's 2011 cash - $2.4B Moto's 2011 deferred tax assets - $2.35B for Motorola Home business sold in 2012 - $75M Moto's factories business sold in 2013 - $2.91B Moto's Mobility business sold in 2014 = Moto's remaining assets including patents, buildings cost Goog ~$1.56B. Thoughts on the acquisition?

--jeremy