Google Inc is paying $12.5 billion to buy Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc in its biggest-ever deal, finally securing a swathe of valuable mobile patents to ramp up a war with Apple Inc and other rivals.

The acquisition of the company that invented the cellphone -- co-founder and CEO Larry Page's boldest move since taking the reins in April -- will transform the mobile landscape and gives Google one of the industry's largest patent libraries.

Analysts say the Internet search leader may be paying through the nose for the patents after losing out to Apple, Microsoft Corp and others for bankrupt Nortel's assets, but that it had few other options as its competitors increasingly sue over intellectual property.

Wall Street quickly anointed Microsoft a winner in this deal, with Windows potentially benefiting if the acquisition alienates the 38 other phone makers that rely on Google's Android. The deal stoked immediate speculation that Nokia and Research in Motion -- struggling device makers in a mobile arena dominated by Apple -- would become takeover targets themselves, sending Nokia's shares up more than 17 percent and RIM's up more than 9 percent.

"Google decided to cross the Rubicon on the device side," said Fred Huet, head of telecoms and media consultancy Greenwich Consulting. "There has been growing frustration (at Google) about the lack and speed of Internet centric devices.

"With Nexus they tried to show the industry what they thought was the right evolution for handsets and it did not have an impact .... With the patents they make sure that Android stays strong."

Google is building up its patent portfolio -- seen as one of the weakest in the industry --- after it lost out to its rivals on Nortel.

"Motorola has a strong patent portfolio which will help protect Android from anti-competitive threats from Microsoft, Apple and other companies," Page told analysts on a call.
The deal -- which took Wall Street by surprise -- appears to mark a shift in strategy from Google's traditional Internet search and advertising empire and occasional forays into video and social networking. But the reality is that it is not a major change. Within its mobile operations, the deal simply moves Google to the Apple business model from that of Microsoft.

"The danger is that other handset makers feel disenfranchised," said Nomura Securities global technology specialist Richard Windsor. "Motorola is the weaker player. This could actually collapse the entire community."

Page, who also launched the ambitious Google+ to compete with Facebook since taking over as CEO, reassured investors on Monday this would not happen, saying that Motorola Mobility will be run as a separate company licensing Android software in the same way as rivals like HTC Corp and LG Electronics.

Phone makers including Samsung Electronics officially said they welcomed a deal that will aid their own legal battles, but some analysts questioned the sincerity of those claims, noting that rival companies would now be unlikely to heavily promote Android since it would benefit a direct competitor.

While analysts see the deal primarily as a way for Google to protect and build out its mobile business, they doubt that it would continue manufacturing handsets in the long term.

"We don't think they necessarily want to be in the business. They want those patents first and foremost," said UBS analyst Brian Pitz. "This is really a game of protection."

While Apple's iPhone leads in market prestige and is seen as more innovative, Android has quietly surpassed it in market share. Android held a 43.4 percent share of the smartphone market at the end of the second quarter, ahead of Nokia's 22 percent, according to Gartner data. Apple ranked third with 18 percent, the data showed.

The deal values Motorola Mobility at $40 per share in cash, a 63 percent premium to its Friday closing price. The terms of the deal also features an unusually rich reverse breakup fee of $2.5 billion, according to a source close to the situation.

"It's a deal that will take time to pay off, but they have a lot of cash and they want to chase after profit," BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis said.

Shares of Motorola Mobility jumped more than 55 percent on the news, while Google fell about 1 percent on Nasdaq.

The deal delivers a windfall for investors including Carl Icahn, Motorola's top shareholder with a stake of just over 11 percent. The activist shareholder had been urging Motorola to look into splitting off its patent business -- one of the biggest in the industry -- from its handset business, ranked eighth in the world by Gartner in terms of unit sales.

INTO THE LIVING ROOM

As part of the deal, Google also gets Motorola's set-top box businesses, giving its nascent TV operation a much-needed boost by providing it with a more direct route into the home.

Bernstein analyst Craig Moffett noted that Google, a frequent disrupter of the pay-television market via its ownership of YouTube and launching of over-the-top TV products that allow consumers to get streaming video in the home, will now be one of its largest suppliers.

"It will be fascinating to see whether this tempers their enthusiasm for disruptive business models as they have to face the practical realities of satisfying their cable customers," said Moffett. "I think the cable industry would be delighted to see Google inside the tent."

Google said it expects the deal to close by the end of 2011 or early in 2012, and that it was confident it would gain the regulatory approvals required in the United States and Europe and the blessing of Motorola Mobility's shareholders.

ANTITRUST REVIEW

Legal experts said the deal was likely to draw even closer scrutiny than usual from antitrust regulators given its size and the fact that they have already launched a formal investigation into Google's business practices. Among the charges leveled at Google is that is manipulates its search engine results to favor its own properties.

"Overall, I don't see any obstacles in terms of regulatory hurdles, but at the same time I wouldn't expect this to be an easy road for Google," said Hendi Sutano, an analyst at Gabelli & Co. "I think that the expectation that the deal will be closed by the end of the year or early 2012 is realistic. Motorola Mobility is outside of Google's core expertise and has a small market share overall.

Lazard advised Google on the deal, while Motorola used Centerview Partners and Frank Quattrone's Qatalyst Partners, sources told Reuters.

(Additional reporting by Sayantani Ghosh in Bangalore, Nadia Damouni, Phil Wahba and Franklin Paul in New York; Editing by Edwin Chan and Richard Chang)
Source:yahoo

Wall Street stocks rose for a third day on Monday as investors saw Google's offer for phone maker Motorola Mobility as an excuse to jump back into the market after weeks of sharp selling.

Acquisition activity is often viewed as a sign major corporations sitting on big cash piles are willing to pay for shares even as economic growth remains sluggish.

Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc jumped 55.8 percent to $38.13 after Google offered $12.5 billion to buy the company, which would be Google's biggest deal ever. Google shares ended down 1.2 percent at $557.23.


With Monday's gains, the stomach-churning losses incurred last week have now been wiped out. Among big winners were banks, which have been a frequent target for selling. Bank of America Corp rose 7.9 percent to $7.76, making it the Dow's biggest percentage gainer.

"The shining point throughout this whole debacle is that corporate America is actually doing quite well," said King Lip, chief investment officer at Baker Avenue Asset Management in San Francisco. "It shows that they're not yet ready to throw in the towel."

Shares of other cell phone companies also rose, riding hopes of additional takeovers or the possibility of business shifting to Google's competitors. Blackberry maker Research in Motion advanced 10.4 percent to $27.11 while Nokia jumped 17.4 percent to $6.29.

The S&P financial index rose 3.2 percent. Shares of Bank of America advanced after it said it plans to sell its credit card business in Canada to TD Bank Group.

Three days of market gains follow weeks of intense volatility and a sharp selloff that put the S&P 500 in negative territory for the year. After the rebound, the S&P is now down just 4.2 percent on the year.

"It's causing people to rethink their view toward the market," said Nick Kalivas, senior equity index analyst at MF Global in Chicago. "It's causing people to think more about valuation than they have in recent days."

The Dow Jones industrial average shot up 213.88 points, or 1.90 percent, to 11,482.90. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 25.68 points, or 2.18 percent, to 1,204.49. The Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 47.22 points, or 1.88 percent, to 2,555.20.

Trading volume slowed from last week to 8.14 billion on Monday, down from the daily average of approximately 16 billion shares traded last week.

About 10 stocks advanced for every declining stock on the New York Stock Exchange, while roughly four stocks rose for every declining stock on the Nasdaq.

A meeting on Tuesday by French and German political leaders was expected to result in initiatives needed to restore confidence in credit and other markets.

Shares of Lowes Cos Inc were up 0.9 percent at $19.68 after it reported weaker-than-expected quarterly sales and cut its fiscal-year outlook. Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Home Depot Inc report earnings on Tuesday.

In other deal news, world No. 1 oil drilling contractor Transocean is paying double the market price for Aker Drilling to refresh its aging fleet of Norwegian drilling rigs and boost flagging orders. Transocean shares advanced 3 percent to $57.26 in New York.
Source:yahoo

Student debt £60,000. As higher tuition fees come into force in 2012, students starting university in England next year can expect to finish their degree with debts of almost £60,000 according to a new survey from independent student guide Push. Average debts
The survey found that current students are racking up an average debt of £5,681 a year, and the average overall in England is £5,876, in Wales £6,231, in Northern Ireland £4,319 and Scotland £2,025.
Those who started studying in 2008 will have graduated with £22,000 of debt, and that figure increases to £24,100 for those who started courses last year and will shoot up to £26,100 for those enrolling this autumn according to the the poll.
But freshers beginning their degrees next year face the steepest increase in debt, to an average of £53,400. Fees in England are estimated to average £8,630 next year, meaning students at English universities will graduate with debts of £59,100.

Liam Burns, the president of the National Union of Students, said ministers seemed to "think it is OK to hang an amount of debt equivalent to a small mortgage over someone's head while they study.
"Leaving young people reliant on commercial credit just to stay in education is scandalous. The case for full reversal of the government's fee regime remains. Ministers must stop student support going to insubstantial fee waivers and instead invest in putting money back in the poorest students' pockets."
The survey found that a quarter of students' debts are owed to sources other than the Student Loans Company - 13 percent borrowed from their parents and family, while 7 percent borrowed from banks or on credit cards.
For students in England yearly average debt has increased by 42 percent 2004 and 2011. Students at University College London owe most each year – £14,788 – while those at the University of Strathclyde owe least – £726.
The editor of Push, Johnny Rich, said the government had failed to explain how students should manage debts of more than £50,000. "For students this year and in the future it has never been more important to understand the differences between universities," he said. "It's not just the debts that vary widely, – the whole experience students have at different institutions and what they stand to gain from them vary too."
Sally Hunt, the general secretary of the University and College Union, which represents lecturers, said average student debt was "already staggeringly high and is now set to get much worse".

She added; "The government's university funding plans are a recipe for disaster and will lead to people making important life choices on the basis of their ability to pay rather than their ability to learn."

Source: walletpop

Axial Seamount volcano. Axial volcano is located near the intersection of the Juan de. Fuca ridge and the Cobb-Eickelberg seamount chain, 480 km west of Cannon Beach, Oregon, USA.
The summit contains a 3 x 8 km wide caldera, breached on SE. Hydrothermal vents colonized with biological communities are located near the caldera. The summit caldera is relatively smooth compared to the volcano flanks. The rectangular shaped summit caldera is the main feature of the summit plateau. The caldera is larger than calderas in Hawaii, but smaller than those in Iceland. There is extensive fissuring associated with the north rift zone. A group of fissures are located in 100-200 m area across the crest of a ridge that extends for 5 km.
D.D. Cone, is located about 3 km northwest of the caldera. It is about 2 km in diameter and 100 m in relief and has a small breached crater facing ENE. Volcanic activity is associated with the Cobb hotspot. The volcano rises 700 metres above the ridge, has rift zones extending 50 kilometres north and south.

Hydrothermal Vents
Most hydrothermal vents are located on the south caldera, and are associated with the south rift zone. The Axial Caldera chimneys are young in appearance and lack associated sulfide mound deposits such as those described from some other ridge-crest sites.

1998 Eruption
An eruption was detected seismically in January 1998 when lava erupted from a 9 km long fissure. The caldera subsided by 3 m during the eruption.

1983 Hydrothermal Venting
Hydrothermal venting was discovered at the volcano in 1983.

Source: volcanolive