Google’s acquisistion of Nest has been officially blessed by the FTC. Having cleared all the necessary hurdles, Google can begin executing their vision for Nest. Paying a reported $3.2 billion for the smart-home device company, Google is likely not going to keep them on that path for long.
Nest CEO Tony Fadell has hardware experience you just can’t manufacture. His work on the original iPod gives him a unique insight to carefully thought-out design, and in creating a robust handheld branch within a larger company. The iPod also laid the groundwork for the following Apple devices, like the iPad and iPhone. Just in the acquihire, Google has someone who can adequately led a hardware push.
That is, reportedly, exactly what Google wants to do. According to various reports, Google wants Nest to be their hardware branch. Easily dismissed at the time of purchase, the sale of Motorola gives Google breathing room to start something internally. Keeping the patents and skunkworks division from Moto on;y bolsters whatever moonshot ideas Fadell and the Nest crew may have, or whatever missives Page provides.
It’s likely that Nest also brings a host of patents and intellectual property to the table as well. Having been involved early-on with connected home devices, Nest likely has some hard-to-get-around patents in that realm, and with Google’s attention to the home — both inside and understanding energy use via other means — Nest could provide sue full there, too. Considering the scope of what Nest is/was, and what Google can/may do with them, this is an important pick-up. While it may take a year or more to see something come of the acquisition, the stage certainly is set for bigger things.
