As competition gets fierce in the technology space companies generally find it important to protect their interests. Those interests also include information. In this case it seems Google has withheld its acquisition numbers on its annual report, IBN Live reported. This is the first time Google has ever withheld this information from its annual report, leading to some news outlets to label this move as “secretive”. The only information offered was the total dollar amount of all acquisitions which was $489 million that does not include the acquisition of Waze which was a whopping $969 million. IBN Live says that while Google has always given the dollar amounts of the deals it makes it also always disclosed the number of deals the company made.
For instance, in its annual report covering 2012, Google disclosed that it bought Motorola Mobility for $12.4 billion and paid an additional $1.17 billion to complete 52 other deals. In 2011, Google listed a total of 79 deals costing a combined $2 billion.
While you’ll find many news outlets painting this story cloak and dagger, this is really only good business. While it’s important to maintain transparency with shareholders and the public. Companies also have to be aware of the information they’re sharing and protect it. Apple is known for keeping things under wraps and I’m certain they only share what is either required by law or what the deem need to know. It’s not unlike a football team keeping their playbook from prying eyes you don’t just show your competition what you could be planning. George Geis’s quote below pretty much sums it up.
“Google probably asked itself, ‘Is that number (of total deals) something that we really need to be putting out there just as we are getting more active in acquisitions?'” Geis said. “I don’t think there is anything particularly nefarious about it.”
Source: IBN Live
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Last Updated on January 23, 2017.
