Google Buys Motorola Mobility

The government clears Google’s purchase of Motorola.

In decisions that largely clear a path for the biggest acquisition in Google’s (GOOG) history, European and U.S. regulators Monday approved the Internet giant’s purchase of Motorola Mobility, a deal that would transform Google into a maker of both mobile hardware and software like its rivals Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft.

The twin approvals by the U.S. Department of Justice and the European Commission are a key milestone toward finalizing the $12.5 billion purchase, an investment by Google that emphasizes the Web’s accelerating shift to mobile devices.

“It goes to show just how important mobile is to Google going forward,” said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with Gartner. “This is a major strategic bet that they are making.”

The deal, which still needs approval from regulators in China, Taiwan and Israel, would not only give Google control of an important maker of smartphones, tablets and TV set-top boxes, but also access to Motorola’s war chest of more than 17,000 patents.

In another decision Monday, the Justice Department also signed off on a series of patent purchases by Apple, Microsoft and Research in Motion from Nortel