Remember that spinoff of Motorola's (MOT) ailing cellphone division that was supposed to happen before the market went to hell? Carl Icahn's breakup that was postponed indefinitely last October?
It's still happening, but not soon. Motorola said during its earnings call today that a split-up is still the "plan of record," but didn't offer much in the way of details.
The problems:
- Motorola's cellphone division is in no shape to be on its own. It's losing market share and burning cash, and things won't get much better until next year, if ever.
- It'd be nearly impossible to raise the amount of capital Motorola needs to make the split happen now. At least in acceptable terms.
It's "going to take time," co-CEO Greg Brown said today. And co-CEO Sanjay Jha said the idea of just shutting down the cellphone division is off the table. Motorola is "completely committed" to making the cellphone bueiness work.
This seems to be why the company "dealmaker" CFO Paul Liska go after less than a year. Brown thanked him for all the "heavy lifting" he'd done for the separation, and for help figuring out how many employees Motorola should fire. But given the fact that the spinoff is indefinitely delayed, Brown thought change was "appropriate."
See Also:
Motorola Betting On 'Social Networking' Software To Sell Android Phones
Motorola: Google Android Better Than Microsoft Windows Mobile
Motorola Q4 As Bad As Expected, CFO Out After Less Than A Year
