Google Gets The Go-ahead From U.S. And EU To Buy Motorola Mobility

U.S. and European regulators have approved Google’s $US12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility and said they would keep a watchfull eye on the internet behemoth to ensure patents critical to the telecommunications industry would be licensed at fair prices. It was one of a series of approvals on Monday that underscored the scramble by technology companies to acquire big pools of patents.

The U.S. Justice Department also approved an Apple-led consortium’s purchase of a trove of patents from bankrupt Canadian company Nortel Networks and signed off on Apple’s purchase of patents formerly owned by Novell Inc.

Google, whose Android software is the top operating system for Internet-enabled smart phones, said in August it would buy phone-maker Motorola for its 17,000 patents and 7,500 patent applications, as it looks to compete with rivals such as Apple and defend itself and Android phone manufacturers in patent litigation. Read the full article »»»»

Motorola Wins Apple Wireless Patent Fight in Germany

A German court has found Apple in violation of a Motorola Mobility patent, ruling that Apple’s iPhone and 3G model iPads infringe on cellular communications, patents owned by Motorola Mobility that relate to General Packet Radio Service – GPRS – data packet transfer technology.

The patent-in-suit is European Patent 1010336 [B1] on a “method for performing a countdown function during a mobile-originated transfer for a packet radio system”. This patent is one of the two patents at issue in the action in which a default judgment was entered against Apple Inc. It was declared essential to the GPRS standard. It’s the European equivalent of U.S. Patent No. 6,359,898, a patent against which Apple raised a FRAND defense in the United States and which is being asserted in an action that was just transferred from the Western District of Wisconsin to the Northern District of Illinois.

Motorola said the ruling validated its “efforts to enforce its patents against Apple’s infringement” Read the full article »»»»

Android Overtakes Apple Mobile App Downloads

​The growth of Googles Android platform has been stratospheric over the past 12 months, at October 2010 Android held 19 percent of the U.S. smartphone market – with Apples iPhone iOS at 24 percent. Fast forward 12 months to October 2011 and Android was holding 38 percent of the smartphone market, an increase of almost 20 percent, against Apples 26 percent, an increase of only 2 percent. Androids big big numbers is also reflected in it’s massive increase of available apps to 500,000.

Note worthy is Samsungs strangle hold on the smartphone market. Our favorite semiconductor behemoth has consistently outperformed Apple in sales. Samsung smartphones make up almost 25 percent of the U.S. market, while the much lauded Apple iPhone has consistently sat below 9 percent. This explains Apples aggression toward Samsung [check the litigation links]  84.5 million smartphone handsets in the U.S. equates to 21 million Samsung handsets to Apples 8 million iPhones, ouch! Read the full article »»»»

Droid Bionic, Motorolas Latest Smart Offering

The last bastion of American Mobile Might – Motorola – has put up a new teaser video for its upcoming smartphone – Droid Bionic – featuring a super gamish sci-fi setting, evil robot, leather bound, sword wielding heroine. Fighting off competition like the Samsung Galaxy S and HTC Sensation, this dolly bird has her work cut out for her! Read the full article »»»»

Google Buys Motorola For $US12.5 Billion, Bits n Bobs, Parts and Patents

Since its launch in November 2007, Android has not only dramatically increased consumer choice but also improved the entire mobile experience for users. Today, more than 150 million Android devices have been activated worldwide — with over 550,000 devices now lit up every day — through a network of about 39 manufacturers and 231 carriers in 123 countries. Given Android’s phenomenal success, we are always looking for new ways to supercharge the Android ecosystem.

According to Googles Official Blog “That is why I am so excited today to announce that we have agreed to acquire Motorola. ” said Googles CEO Larry Page via the behemoths Official Blog. Motorola has a history of over 80 years of innovation in communications technology and products, and in the development of intellectual property, which have helped drive the remarkable revolution in mobile computing we are all enjoying today. Its many industry milestones include the introduction of the world’s first portable cell phone nearly 30 years ago, and the StarTAC — the smallest and lightest phone on earth at time of launch. In 2007, Motorola was a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance that worked to make Android the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. I have loved my Motorola phones from the StarTAC era up to the current DROIDs. Apple Inc is in for a serious shakeup, it’s iPhone is about to get quite a bit of competition. Read the full article »»»»