Motorola hones broadband with new buy

CHICAGO: Motorola Inc., the world's second-largest maker of cell phones, said it has agreed to acquire a maker of gear to wire homes and businesses with high-speed fiber-optic networks.

Motorola, based in Schaumburg, Illinois, did not provide details of the deal to buy privately held Quantum Bridge Communications Inc. other than to say it would be an all-cash transaction. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

Lehman Brothers analyst, Tim Luke in a research report estimated the purchase price as less than $100 million and that the acquisition will not have a material effect on his financial estimates for the company.

Motorola said the deal for Quantum, based in Andover, Massachusetts, builds on its ability to offer products to high-speed Internet network operators to deliver advanced services. Quantum will become a part of Motorola's Broadband Communications Sector unit.

Last year, the three largest U.S. local telephone companies -- Verizon Communications, SBC Communications Inc. and BellSouth Corp. agreed on a common set of technical standards to improve development of fiber-optic networks and speed up the introduction of new services such as photo sharing and interactive gaming.

© Reuters