Google Selling Motorola Home Business, Will Focus On Smartphones

Google’s purchase of Motorola Mobility came with a lot of extra baggage, specifically Motorola’s home business division. Now the tech giant is attempting to sell that division of Motorola to one of two potential buyers. Motorola Home Business is the section of the company that focuses on set-top boxes and other equipment for cable providers.

Google hopes to sell the division for $2 billion. However, its requirement to control some equity and to retain the division’s patents could complicate the sale. Motorola Mobility is also engaged in a bitter patent battle with set-top box provider TiVo, which could lead to more complications for any potential buyer.

After acquiring Motorola Mobility, the search firm began to sell off or close divisions outside of the high-end smartphone market. For example, 540 jobs are being dismantled at the company’s South Korean offices. Closing its offices in South Korea makes sense as the company has had a hard time competing against South Korea’s own tech giants, specifically Samsung and LG.

Currently in talks to purchase Motorola Mobility’s Home Office division are the Arris Group out of Georgia and Pace Plc, which is located in England.

According to Bloomberg, Google may offer some financing help to a potential buyer to offset the high cost of the acquisition and so the buyer can use its own resources to fend off increasing competition in the digital applications space.

Google in May 2012 announced plans to shed 20 percent of the Motorola Mobility workforce, an amount equal to 4,000 staff members.

Are you surprised at the speed for which Google is dismantling non-essential business units at Motorola Mobility?