Google Warns Of More Motorola Job Cuts

Google has warned of more Motorola job cuts, adding that the further restructuring may result in “significant” additional costs for the company.

The search giant has increased the amount it expects to spend on redundancies from $275 million (£170 million) to $300 million and said it could cost $40 million in other costs to quit unprofitable markets.

“Motorola continues to evaluate its plans and further restructuring actions may occur, which may cause Google to incur additional restructuring charges, some of which may be significant,” the company told Reuters. “Motorola has continued to refine its planned restructuring actions and now expects to broaden those actions to include additional geographic regions outside of the US.”

Motorola job cuts

It had been previously suggested that Motorola was planning to downsize its operations in Asia by exiting unprofitable markets. Google has already said it would cut 20 percent of Motorola staff and that the company would produce fewer phones, instead focusing its attention on smartphones.

Google completed its £8.5 million takeover of the company in May with the stated aim of supercharging the Android ecosystem and enhancing competition in mobile computing. However, it also gained access to Motorola’s patent portfolio, which Google has valued at around £3.5 million.

Manufacturers of Android smartphones, most notably Samsung, have been the target of patent lawsuits from the likes of Apple.

Investors questioned the wisdom of the move, raising concerns that Google was buying a hardware manufacturer that had much lower profit margins in an area where it had little experience.

Earlier today, it was reported that Motorola had bought face recognition software company Viewdle.

How much do you know about smartphones? Take our quiz!