Google has announced Q2 revenues of $12.21bn (£7.77bn), 35 per cent up on Q2, 2011, and 15 per cent up on the previous quarter. The figure was boosted by its acquisition of Motorola Mobility Holdings in May – the statement is the first since the buy-out, and incorporates Motorolas assets, liabilities, and operating results. At $1.25bn, Motorola accounted for 10 per cent of Googles Q2 revenues – but it dragged down the overall profits, reporting an operating loss of $233m over the quarter.
The rising amount of inventory, driven largely by mobile, meant the number of paid clicks during Q2 rose 42 per cent. As a result, CPC (Cost Per Click) dropped 16 per cent – good news for advertisers but less so for Google.
Google CEO Larry Page, however, remains understandably positive about the results: “Google standalone had a strong quarter with 21 per cent year-on-year revenue growth, and we launched a bunch of exciting new products at I/O – in particular the Nexus 7 tablet, which has received rave reviews,” says Page. “This quarter is also special because Motorola is now part of the Google family, and we’re excited about the potential to build great devices for users.”
Googles increased revenues are in stark contrast to the results announced by Nokia yesterday and Microsoft today. Nokia annouced a Q2 loss of €827m (£645m, including a one-off €500m restructuring charge), while Microsoft has just announced a $492m loss for Q2, the first quarterly loss in the companys history. More on this to come.