... Rich people get rich by spending wisely. Just because Google -has- money doesn't mean it should spend it on the first thing that comes along.
If they didn't buy something, it's because they thought the price was too high for the value it brought to them. It's pretty simple economics.
Also, the value of patent pool may be vastly different to the consortium than to Google. Basically, the value reflects how the buyer evaluates competitor's competetitive strength.
In this case, it may be the consortium considers Google a very strong competitor, while Google considers the consortium a somewhat less troubling competition.
At the end of the day, Google has to start to have a far more proactive approach protecting Android and Android related cases that essentially are forcing manufacturers to pay up for licences essentially for patent protection via Microsoft :/
And deplorably, I think he's right.