Google to cut 1,200 jobs at Motorola Mobility
Google paid US$12.5 billion for Motorola’s phone division last year. — Reuters picSAN FRANCISCO, March 8 — Google Inc’s Motorola Mobility unit will slash 1,200 jobs or 10 per cent of its workforce as the smartphone maker tries to return to profitability, the Wall Street Journal reported today, citing a company email.
The layoffs come on top of 4,000 jobs Google eliminated at Motorola Mobility in August as the Internet search giant seeks to make more smartphones and fewer simple handsets.
The email about the job cuts, which will affect workers in the United States, China and India, said “our costs are too high, we’re operating in markets where we’re not competitive and we’re losing money,” according to the Journal.
Google bought the money-losing cellphone maker for US$12.5 billion (RM39 billion) last year — its largest acquisition ever — aiming to use Motorola Mobility’s patents to fend off legal attacks on its Android mobile platform and expand beyond its software business.
The acquisition raised concerns on Wall Street that Google was entering a business with much lower profit margins.
Google and Motorola Mobility could not be immediately reached for comment by Reuters outside regular business hours. — Reuters
