As The Wall Street Journal reports, Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) has decided to follow Apple into the device business with its buyout of Motorola. The paper says that interest in hardware and software has grown as it launches a new home entertainment system.
But, it is well known that very few companies make much money in hardware. Motorola (NYSE: MMI) itself is an example, and so are many of the fading PC companies which do not make tablets or smartphones. Particularly telling is the success, seemed at least, of Amazon.com’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) Kindle Fire. Some experts believe the company losses money on the tablet. It is used, they say, as a way to market the e-commerce company’s entertainment devices and e-books.
It will take a long time to know whether the Google decision is fruitful
Google Inc. is developing a home-entertainment system that streams music wirelessly throughout the home and would be marketed under the company’s own brand, according to people briefed on the company’s plans