Google: Android was "best deal ever"

Believe it or not.. Android wasn't always a Google property, but it was something they acquired in 2005, three years before the first Android handset (the T-Mobile G1) came to market.

Google VP David Lawee recently called Google's Android purchase as Google's "best deal ever".. which is high praise when you consider how many companies Google has bought (for example YouTube and dozens of others).

Apple may have popularised the idea of offering a complete package of hardware and software services, but Android is arguably more useful as so many people use Google services already. Microsoft has realised this too with Windows Phone 7, and is attempting to copy Apple and Android while adding its own distinctiveness.. in other words, all these big players understand that integrated mobile platforms are going to be big business. And what will that business look like in another 5 years time?

[Via]