Google reported weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings as losses piled up at its soon-to-be-sold Motorola Mobility handset unit, but core ad growth accelerated. Per-share profit ex items rose 13% to $12.01, missing the consensus view of $12.24, according to 42 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Google (GOOG) revenue, excluding what it pays to other websites to carry ads, climbed 19% to $13.55 billion, inching past
Under Google’s ownership, the Motorola smartphone business continued to fade. But China’s Lenovo aims to return the storied cellphone brand to prominence. Lenovo did it once before with IBM’s PC business, which it purchased in 2005. Last year, Lenovo surpassed Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) as the world’s top manufacturer of personal computers, thanks to its acquisition of IBM’s (IBM) PC business. “Lenovo has a proven track record of successfully embracing and strengthening great brands — as we did with IBM’s Think brand,” Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing said in a statement Wednesday. Lenovo is buying Google’s (GOOG) Motorola Mobility unit for $2.91 billion, including $660 million in cash and $750 million in Lenovo stock. The rest will be financed with a three-year promissory note for $1.5 billion. After the deal closes, Google will have an ownership stake in Lenovo of 4.6% to 5.6%. “The acquisition of such an iconic brand, innovative product portfolio and incredibly…
Google’s (GOOG) sale of its money-losing smartphone maker Motorola Mobility, announced late Wednesday, generated many positive reviews on Wall Street. Google is selling the business for $2.9 billion to China’s Lenovo, which has become the No. 1 PC maker after acquiring IBM ‘s (IBM) PC business in 2005. Google will retain control of most of the patents it acquired when it bought Motorola. “The key is that Google does maintain patent protection for