Google to cut 4,000 jobs at Motorola Mobility, take US$275-million charge

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG) plans to cut about 4,000 positions at its Motorola Mobility subsidiary, about one-fifth of the cellphone maker’s total workforce.

The leading search engine company says two-thirds of the reductions at Motorola Mobility will be outside of the United States but Google didn’t disclose details.

A regulatory document filed by the search engine giant says the cuts will result in up to US$275 million of severance-related charges in the third-quarter.

Google acquired Motorola Mobility Holdings earlier this year for US$12.5 billion as part of its telecom strategy.

The job cuts are part of a plan to simplify Motorola’s product lineup and to “put more emphasis on more innovative and profitable devices.”

Google says about one-third of Motorola Mobility’s ninety locations will be closed.