Motorola taps former Qualcomm exec Sanjay Jha for mobility business

Computerworld - Motorola Inc. today announced that former Qualcomm Inc. chief operating officer Sanjay Jha will be the new CEO of Motorola's mobile devices business, which is expected to be spun off in mid-2009.

Jha will also serve as co-CEO of Motorola with Greg Brown, who has been the company's sole CEO until now. At the same time, Brown will become CEO of Motorola's broadband mobility solutions business.

The choice of Jha is a "very good choice," said Jeff Kagan, an independent analyst. "This is a big win on Motorola's part."

While co-CEOs is an unusual management setup, "maybe that's what it will take to pull the company back onto the playing field," Kagan said.

During the company's second quarter financial report last week, Brown said a separate mobile device business led by an executive devoted to mobile devices would be the best course of action to benefit stockholders. Brown and Jha appeared in a joint conference call to announce the news to financial analysts at noon EST today, but few details were immediately available.

In addition to his former title as Qualcomm's chief operating officer, Jha, who is 45, was president of the Qualcomm division that made chips for cell phones.

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