Google's planned £7.9bn takeover of Motorola Mobility has been approved by Chinese authorities, granting the internet giant access to Motorola's 17,000 patents.

Though Motorola is based in the USA, where approval had already been granted, Chinese authorisation was required before it could complete a full takeover.

As a condition of the takeover, Google have been told by Chinese regulators that their popular Android operating system must remain available for free to all for at least five years.

Google's takeover could be a sign that the company is seeking to develop its own hardware, though it is more likely that the patents acquired in the Motorola takeover is where the true value of the deal comes from.

In an ever competitive smartphone market, the 17,000 patents acquired could prove important for Google against the threat of multinational lawsuits from the likes of Samsung, Apple and Microsoft relating to Android devices.