Google reported that its profit climbed and its annual revenue hit an unprecedented high last year as it evolved to stay in tune with people using smartphones and tablets. "We ended 2012 with a strong quarter," said Google co-founder and chief executive Larry Page. "We hit $50 billion in revenues for the first time last year; not a bad achievement in just a decade and a half."

The fourth quarter profit was up 6.7 percent from a year earlier at $2.89 billion, and for the full year Google's earnings grew 10 percent to $10.74 billion.

Revenue in the quarter that ended December 31 was up 36 percent from the same period a year earlier at $14.4 billion. For the year, revenues grew to $50.2 billion.

In a conference call with financial analysts, Google executives stressed how the company is connecting with people on smartphones and tablets, and cautioned that it would take time to get freshly acquired Motorola Mobility on course.

Page said he was excited about progress Google has made in handling search queries spoken to mobile devices and described the online Play shop for music, books, applications and other digital content as "on fire."

Google's mapping service program tailored for Apple gadgets running on the iOS platform have been a hit, Page said, adding that its search and email programs are also popular on Apple devices.

Google has been selling unwanted Motorola Mobility assets since it completed its $12.5 billion takeover of the company last year.

Chief financial officer Patrick Pichette said during the earnings call that the Internet giant has "12 to 18 months of product pipeline it is still working through" at Motorola.

In December, Google announced it was selling the Motorola Mobility Home unit to ARRIS in a cash and stock deal valued at $2.35 billion.

Google also saw success with experiments tying real-world shopping to smartphones, according to executives.