Motorola Mobility Shareholders Approve Google Merger

By Josh Long

Motorola Mobility on Thursday announced that its shareholders voted overwhelmingly to approve its $12.5 billion merger with Google, the search-engine powerhouse that is transforming into a major player in the global wireless industry.

Roughly 99 percent of the shares voting at a special meeting of stockholders voted in favor of the deal, according to Motorola Mobility, the maker of smartphones and other wireless devices.

Libertyville, Ill.-based Motorola Mobility said it expects the agreement to close early next year, but the company warned that factors outside its control could delay approval, or worse.

“It is important to note however, that the merger is subject to various closing conditions, and it is possible that the failure to timely meet such conditions or other factors outside of the Company’s control could delay or prevent the Company from completing the merger altogether,” Motorola Mobility cautioned.

In August, Google  the owner of the Android operating system that is incorporated in many popular smartphones today  announced plans to acquire Motorola Mobility for $40 per share in cash.

The agreement will make Google an actual supplier of handsets and tablets, not simply the proprietor of the operating system that runs such devices.

Mountain View, Calif.-based Google plans to run Motorola Mobility as a separate business, and Motorola Mobility will remain a licensee of Android.