Google spent $1.1 billion to buy the Pixel team from HTC. Do you remember MOTO 6 years ago?

Today, Google and HTC reached a $1.1 billion partnership agreement.

The acquisition of Motorola six years ago was for patents

This transaction can't help but remind people of Google's acquisition of Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion six years ago. Larry Page, then Google CEO, explained the acquisition as "seeking a new way to support the Android ecosystem." However, according to most analysts, Google is more concerned about the patents held by Motorola.

This view was later confirmed when Google was plagued by Android patent lawsuits. After the acquisition, Motorola's patented technology greatly increased Google's bargaining chips in the patent dispute.

In 2014, Lenovo bought Motorola from Google for US$2.9 billion. Although Motorola caused Google to lose a lot of money, the patents obtained have remained in Google's hands and none of them were taken away by Lenovo.

This acquisition is really for hardware

In this deal with HTC, Google is clearly more concerned about hardware capabilities. Google established a hardware department last year and launched the Pixel series of mobile phones, and HTC became the manufacturer of this phone.

This acquisition will not only strengthen Google's hardware manufacturing capabilities, but also reduce its dependence on HTC. Google and HTC have always had a good cooperation, including the Pixel 2 mobile phone scheduled to be released in October, which is also produced by HTC. However, HTC has not had an easy time in the past two years, with heavy losses, 75% of its market value evaporated, and less than 1% of its mobile phone market share. No one can guarantee that HTC's mobile phone business can last until that day. Therefore, recycling mobile phone manufacturing capabilities has become the most prudent approach for Google.

Doing so will not only benefit the future development of Pixel, but also the future of the entire Android camp.

Looking at the current Android phone camp, the only brand that can really compete with Apple is Samsung. If Samsung also encounters product difficulties, it will be difficult to find a brand that can compete with Apple, so Google needs to take action on its own to control the high-end Android phone market. And if Samsung vigorously promotes the strategy of building its own software and service ecosystem to compete with Android, then Google can also respond by producing its own mobile phone products.

After slimming down, HTC has more opportunities

For HTC, the past few years have not been easy. Although it launched its flagship mobile phone product U11 in the first half of the year, it did not receive much response in the market. Moreover, the unstoppable decline in performance also made HTC's mobile phone business overwhelmed.

Although we have achieved remarkable results in the production and sales of VR equipment, it is a big challenge to maintain these advantages based on the current performance.

After this transaction, HTC's mobile phone business team was able to slim down, allowing it to focus more on investing in its own smartphone brands. HTC also revealed that it is preparing for the next generation of flagship phones. For HTC now, focusing more on its own mobile phone business may be the best opportunity to make a comeback.

In addition, the $1.1 billion in funding will also be of great help to HTC in consolidating its leading position in VR. Maintaining its industry advantages in the VR field is absolutely crucial for HTC's future development.

In fact, although this is the second time Google has acquired a mobile phone manufacturer, the purpose of each acquisition is completely different. The transaction with HTC is truly for hardware. What kind of efforts and achievements Google will make in the field of mobile phone hardware in the future may have a significant impact on the entire Android mobile phone camp.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.