Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola today announced that Nokia Siemens  will acquire the majority of Motorola’s wireless network infrastructure assets. Said assets come at the price of $1.2 billion in cash.

"This is an exciting acquisition that I believe has significant benefits for customers, employees and our shareholders," said Nokia Siemens Networks CEO Rajeev Suri. "Motorola’s current customers will continue to get world-class support for their installed base and a clear path for transitioning to next generation technologies while employees will join an industry leader with global scale and reach. Nokia Siemens Networks will see the benefits of a deal that is expected to enhance profitability and cash-flow and to have significant upside potential."

"Motorola is very proud of the operational and financial performance of our Networks business and its employees, who will now become a valuable addition to Nokia Siemens Networks. We are excited to have reached this agreement to combine our Networks team with such an industry leader," said Greg Brown, Co-CEO of Motorola. "This is great news for our customers, our investors and our people and will allow us to sharpen our strategic focus on providing mission and business critical solutions for our government, public safety, and enterprise customers."

Motorola will retain its iDEN business, the patents related to its wireless network infrastructure business, and other selected assets.

The deal is expected to be closed by the end of the year (subject to closing conditions and regulatory approvals). Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola also are exploring a global relationship in the public safety arena.