The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday afternoon approved Google’s $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility, greenlighting a deal that will move the search company into a much better position when it comes to marketing its Android mobile operating system.
At the same time, the Justice Department also approved several other separate transactions, including patent acquistions by Apple, Microsoft and Resarch In Motion (RIM).
Regarding Google, the Justice Department pointed out that the company would acquire 17,000 patents from Motorola, but said “transferring ownership of the patents would not substantially alter current market dynamics.” However, the agency did express concerns that “how Google may exercise its patents in the future” could result in anticompetitive practices.
Earlier, the European Union approved Google’s Motorola purchase as well. The transaction still needs to be approved in Israel, China and Taiwan.
