Google seeks European Commission approval for Motorola Mobility deal

INTERNET GIANT Google is seeking approval from the European Commission (EC) for its proposed buyout of mobile device company Motorola Mobility.

According to a notification on the European Commission web site Google contacted the EC on Friday about the deal, which needs regulatory approval under Council Regulation 139/2004 that relates to acquisitions and mergers.

European Commission spokesperson Marisa González Iglesias confirmed to The INQUIRER that the EC had been notified by Google about the proposed acquisition and that there was a deadline of 25 working days for a decision on whether or not it would grant clearance. She said that the EC would not comment further on the deal.

Google decided to buy Motorola Mobility in August for $12.5bn and Motorola Mobility's shareholders voted in favour of the merger earlier this month.

Google's acquisition is likely focused on the extensive patent library that Motorola Mobility owns, numbering some 17,000 patents in total not counting several thousand more that are pending, which many see as a valuable defence for Google's Android operating system in a growing patent war between various smartphone manufacturers.

The pending EC approval represents one of two major hurdles for Google to overcome, with the other being a US Department of Justice (DoJ) decision that is still under consideration. The DoJ investigation appears to be taking some time, with concerns having been raised over the potential effect of the deal on competition, but Google has consistently said it is confident that the deal will be approved by all regulatory bodies.

The EC decision is expected by 10 January, 2012. µ