Earlier this week, Google announced its intent to acquire Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion, which if approved, would be Google’s largest acquisition to date.
Apparently, that price was not high enough for at least one Motorola Mobility shareholders, however. Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports that Motorola Mobility Holdings and CEO Sanjay Jha have been sued by shareholder John Keating who doesn’t think they got the best price, and is seeking class action.
The publication quotes Keating:
The offered consideration does not compensate shareholders for the company’s intrinsic value and stand-alone alternatives going forward, nor does it compensate shareholders for the company’s value as a strategic asset for Google.
…
“Motorola has experienced an economic resurgence since separating into two separate companies…The Android smartphone technology it relies on continues to gain ground on Apple’s iPhone.
Neither Motorola Mobility nor Google have offered any real comment on the suit at this point.
Separately, FOSS Patents reports that Motorola Mobility’s defense in a legal battle with Microsoft over patents, was dealt a “huge setback” as an order was issued. “The best defense in patent disputes is a good offense, but after an order issued today, it’s clear that MMI’s federal countersuits against Microsoft are not going to trial anytime soon. There are several federal lawsuits going, and the earliest trial date is in late November 2012 — for the others I haven’t even seen a scheduling order, so they will hardly go to trial before 2013,” it reports. “In the meantime, Microsoft will get a decision on its ITC complaint against MMI.”
The acquisition has been positioned by Google has mainly a defensive strategy to protect its Android operating system, with the help of the patents it receives from the Motorola deal.
When the deal was announced, Google announced that Android has had 150 million devices activated. The company maintains that Android will remain open source, and Motorola Mobility will operated as a separate company without any favorable treatment.
It’s manufacturer competitors have said things like:
J.K. Shin, President of Samsung’s Mobile Communications Division said, “We welcome today’s news, which demonstrates Google’s deep commitment to defending Android, its partners, and the ecosystem.”
Sony Ericsson President and CEO Bert Nordberg said, “I welcome Google‘s commitment to defending Android and its partners.”
HTC CEO Peter Chou said, “We welcome the news of today‘s acquisition, which demonstrates that Google is deeply committed to defending Android, its partners, and the entire ecosystem.”
LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company president and CEO Jong-Seok Park said, “We welcome Google‘s commitment to defending Android and its partners.”
Those are just the public comments, and one can only imagine what is really being said outside of the spotlight.
Jha said, “This transaction offers significant value for Motorola Mobility’s stockholders and provides compelling new opportunities for our employees, customers, and partners around the world. We have shared a productive partnership with Google to advance the Android platform, and now through this combination we will be able to do even more to innovate and deliver outstanding mobility solutions across our mobile devices and home businesses.”
Google is getting more than just a phone maker with Motorola Mobility. Google baby monitors anyone?
The Taiwanese Next Media Animation released one of its popular videos this week, dealing with the acquisition. Enjoy:
Do you think the price of the acquisition was too low?