Which smartphone maker did Google acquire in 2012 for about $12.5 billion?

Google acquired Motorola Mobility in 2012 for about $12.5 billion. Google announced the purchase in August 2011, and the transaction closed on May 22, 2012, after regulatory approval in several jurisdictions.

Motorola Mobility had been created in 2011 when Motorola separated into two public companies. Motorola Mobility focused on mobile devices and home products, while Motorola Solutions concentrated on enterprise and government communications.

Google’s main strategic interest included Motorola Mobility’s large portfolio of mobile-patent rights. Those patents could help Google and Android device makers respond to legal disputes in the smartphone industry. Motorola also provided Google with a direct hardware business, although Google continued licensing Android to many manufacturers.

Google later sold most of Motorola Mobility to Lenovo in 2014 for about $2.9 billion, while retaining ownership of many of the patents. The Google deal therefore did not mean that Motorola remained a permanent Google smartphone brand.