[SatNews] There is super huge news today, the kind that one would access Google to ensure that it is true.

Google Inc. (GOOG), maker of the Android mobile-phone software, agreed to buy smartphone maker Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. for $12.5 billion. This also includes Motorola's more than 17,000 patents and expanding the hardware business.

Both boards have approved the takeover in which Motorola shareholders will get $40 a share in cash, which is 63 percent more than Motorola Mobility’s closing price on the New York Stock Exchange on August 12.

Google is being transformed in an effort to compete with Apple Inc. [AAPL] in the smartphone market. Android was the best-selling smartphone operating system in the second quarter as sales rose more than fourfold to 43.3 percent of the market, led by Samsung and HTC, according to research firm Gartner Inc. Apple had an 18.2 percent share in the U.S., yet globally the Google ranks outside the top players in the smartphone market.

Apple, which makes its own wireless software and hardware, briefly became the most valuable company in the world last week, helped by demand for the iPhone and the iPad tablet computer. Motorola Mobility, based in Libertyville, Illinois, rose $13.92, or 57 percent, to $38.40 at 10:23 a.m. on the New York Stock Exchange. Google, based in Mountain View, California, fell $5.77, or 1 percent, to $558 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. InterDigital Inc., owner of mobile-phone patents that’s considering a sale, fell $14.87, or 20 percent, to $60.85.

What if the deal falls through? Google agreed to pay Motorola Mobility $2.5 billion if the deal falls through, a person familiar with the matter said. However, Jennifer Erickson, a spokeswoman for Motorola Mobility, declined to comment on the breakup fee. If the deal is good to go, this will conclude the life of Motorola, which helped pioneer mobile phones and introduced its first consumer handset in the early 1980s.

In March of 2008 Motorola had a plan to spin off its mobile-phone business despite market share losses and pressure from major shareholders. In January the split was concluded after the company had delayed the move amid the global recession giving birth to Motorola Solutions Inc., which makes radio equipment to emergency workers and scanning devices for retailers.

That was in January with Motorola Solutions, then last month it was suggested that Motorola Mobility explore alternatives for its patent portfolio after Nortel Networks Corp. sold wireless-technology intellectual property for $4.5 billion.