Motorola Inc. is near a deal to sell its wireless-network equipment business to Nokia Siemens Networks for more than $1.3 billion, according to one person familiar with the sale.
The sale may be announced as early as today, according to the person who wouldn’t agree to be identified because the deal hasn’t yet been made public. The final price is expected to be between $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion, the person said. Jennifer Erickson, a spokeswoman for Motorola, declined to comment.
Nokia Siemens Networks, a joint venture between Finland’s Nokia Oyj and Munich-based Siemens AG, wants to boost its presence in North America to compete with larger rival Ericsson AB and faster-growing competitors such as China’s Huawei Technologies Co. Nokia Siemens unsuccessfully bid twice for assets belonging to Toronto-based Nortel Networks Corp. during the past year after the telecom-equipment maker filed for bankruptcy protection and sold off units.
The sale may be announced as early as today, according to the person who wouldn’t agree to be identified because the deal hasn’t yet been made public. The final price is expected to be between $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion, the person said. Jennifer Erickson, a spokeswoman for Motorola, declined to comment.
Nokia Siemens Networks, a joint venture between Finland’s Nokia Oyj and Munich-based Siemens AG, wants to boost its presence in North America to compete with larger rival Ericsson AB and faster-growing competitors such as China’s Huawei Technologies Co. Nokia Siemens unsuccessfully bid twice for assets belonging to Toronto-based Nortel Networks Corp. during the past year after the telecom-equipment maker filed for bankruptcy protection and sold off units.
Source : BusinessWeek.com