UPDATE: NSN Sees Motorola Deal Closing 1Q Despite Injunction
February 23 2011 - 1:50PM
Dow Jones News
Telecom gear vendor Nokia Siemens Networks still expects its
planned acquisition of most of Motorola's network equipment assets
to close by the end of the current quarter, despite an adverse
preliminary court injunction, press spokeswoman Riitta Mard said
Wednesday.
The preliminary injunction, issued by a federal judge in Chicago
Tuesday, prevents the transfer of any of Huawei Technologies Co.'s
trade secrets through the planned acquisition.
Huawei, the Chinese privately-held telecom equipment vendor,
last month took legal action to delay the deal, arguing that
Motorola has sold Huawei-branded gear in the past, and that its
intellectual property could therefore be transferred to rival Nokia
Siemens through the planned acquisition.
Still, Mard said Wednesday that Nokia Siemens has "absolutely no
interest" in Huawei's trade secrets, adding that the company wants
to buy the Motorola assets to gain access to new customers and make
inroads in markets such as the U.S. and Japan.
Nokia Siemens will now evaluate the Chicago court's order to
decide its next step, she said, adding that the company is also
working with Chinese authorities to gain the final regulatory
approval needed to finalize the acquisition.
Motorola Tuesday noted that the judge didn't expressly forbid
the sale of any assets, and said the deal should close this
quarter.
In a later statement Wednesday, Huawei said: "We hope Motorola
will now turn its focus to ensuring that Huawei's intellectual
property rights are well protected."
It described the "equitable" court result as "the basis of
Huawei's continued and wide cooperation with many U.S. companies.
Moreover, it gives us the confidence to increase our investment in
the U.S.," it said.
Nokia Siemens Networks, a joint venture between Finland's Nokia
Corp. (NOK) and Germany's Siemens AG (SI), last year agreed to buy
the bulk of Motorola's network equipment business for $1.2 billion,
but the transaction has been delayed while Chinese antitrust
authorities review the deal.
Motorola has since split into two separate companies; Motorola
Mobility Holdings Inc. (MMI) and Motorola Solutions Inc. (MSI).
By Gustav Sandstrom, Dow Jones Newswires; +46-8-5451-3099;
gustav.sandstrom@dowjones.com
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