85% loss on the deal? - No http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/did-google-really-lose-on-its-original-motorola-deal/ http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/d

85% loss on the deal? - No http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/did-google-really-lose-on-its-original-motorola-deal/ http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/29/did-google-really-los... .. considering 1. Motorola had cash on hand and tax credits worth $3B. 2. Google sold Motorola's STB business for $2.4B to Arris. 3. It valued the acquired Motorola patents at $5.5B. Considering #3 is overvalued by 100%, it still comes to a loss of about $2b. But the gains would not be just monetary as Google now has a patent portfolio to be a stronger player in the smartphones business, and has had a say in the organization of the smartphones hardware segment which it can leverage.