Google buys a big chunk of HTC's smartphone business

The rumors are (mostly) true: Google is buying a part of HTC to beef up its hardware business.

Google announced the agreement late Wednesday. Senior Vice President of Hardware Rock Osterloh wrote in a blog post that a "team of HTC talent" would join Google's hardware team, along with a non-exclusive license for some of HTC's intellectual property.

The deal is less dramatic than what was expected by many — that Google would buy HTC's entire smartphone business in a long-term bid to go toe-to-toe with Apple in the smartphone market — but it does show Google felt it needed more direct control over hardware assets to be more nimble competitor.  Read more...