Google on Wednesday announced that it is acquiring a division of Taiwan’s HTC Corp for $1.1 billion (around Rs 7,100 crore). The Alphabet Inc-owned company is taking over the division that manufactures Google Pixel smartphones, marking a fresh push from the tech giant into hardware operations, Reuters reported.
“For Google, this agreement further reinforces its commitment to smartphones and overall investment in its emerging hardware business,” it said.
Under the deal, Google will also get a non-exclusive licence for HTC’s intellectual property, and HTC will continue to run its remaining smartphone business. The contract does not involve the purchase of a direct stake.
Some analysts estimate that Google’s Pixel accounts for 20% of HTC’s smartphone shipments. “It is still early days for Google’s hardware business,” said Rick Osterloh, who was hired by Google to run its hardware operations in 2016.
In 2012, Google had bought smartphone maker Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion (around Rs 80,600 crore) and sold it to China’s Lenovo Group Ltd for less than $3 billion (approximately Rs 19,300 crore) two years later.
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