Google’s Acquisition of Motorola Mobility: A Mistake?

Google’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) recent acquisition of Motorola Mobility has been the main source of confusion as analysts pore over the company’s fourth-quarter earning calls. CFO Patrick Pichette has defended the purchase, observing, “No one should be surprised if results from the segments are variable for quite a while as we restructure the business. And remember, we inherited a 12-18 month product pipeline that we’re still working through.

But even if Pichette can handle the wait, the real question is: how long can investors stay patient?

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Motorola Business brought in about $2.58 billion last quarter and just $1.51 billion this quarter — but put into perspective, this dip in revenue comes just weeks after Google sold Motorola Home to broadband media tech company Arris (NASDAQ:ARRS). Google even released a special accounting notice to advise antsy investors and note that had they included Motorola Home, earnings would have been closer to $15.24 billion.

Analysts are referring to Motorola Mobility as a bit of a fixer-upper, especially considering that the company announced that it will be producing fewer phones, focusing on Intel’s (NASDAQ:INTC) as-of-yet unproven mobile processor Atom, and posted very weak fourth quarter revenue.

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