In the deal, Nokia Siemens expects to gain relationships with more than 50 operators and strengthen relationships with China Mobile, Clearwire, KDDI, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, and Vodafone. Nokia Siemens also expects the acquisition to enhance its position in key wireless technologies, giving it a large global footprint in CDMA .

Rajeev Suri, CEO of Nokia Siemens Networks, said Motorola's customers will still get support for installed bases, as well as a "clear path for transitioning to next-generation technologies." Nokia Siemens, he continued, will see the benefits of a deal that is "expected to enhance profitability and cash flow and to have significant upside potential."

Motorola's Networked Reach

That upside is, in part, market share. Nokia Siemens expects the acquisition to thrust it into third position in terms of wireless-infrastructure vendors in the United States, first in Japan, and second globally.

Motorola's networks infrastructure business offers products and services for wireless networks, including GSM , CDMA, WCDMA, WiMAX and LTE. It's a market leader in WiMAX, with 41 contracts in 21 countries. Motorola also boasts a strong global footprint in CDMA with 30 active networks in 22 countries, along with a GSM installed base of more than 80 active networks in 66 countries and traction with LTE early adopters.

Bosco Novak, head of customer operations at Nokia Siemens, said as customers look to transition from CDMA networks to next-generation technologies, the addition of the Motorola business will position the company to meet those needs. Verizon, for one, is giving the deal a nod.

"Verizon views today's announcement as good news for the global wireless industry," said Richard Lynch, executive vice president and CTO of Verizon. "This deal brings together two important Verizon suppliers. We look forward to our continuing work with Nokia Siemens Networks."

A Smart Network Move?

About 7,500 employees are expected to transfer to Nokia Siemens from Motorola when the transaction closes, including large research and development sites in the United States, China and India. The companies expect to complete closing activities by the end of 2010.

"Motorola is getting rid of all the wireless equipment that has to do with putting up towers, not putting up access points," said Michael Disabato, managing vice president of network and telecom for Gartner. "Nokia Siemens has a bigger lock on an area where they have access to more of these operators and they are selling Motorola-designed base stations. It's an enhancement to their portfolio."

An enhancement, indeed. But is it the right buy at the right time for Nokia Siemens? Disabato isn't so sure. As he sees it, Nokia is going several directions at once, including finding ways to become more consumer-oriented. "There is going to be a lot of 4G development work done," he said. "If the IP that Motorola is selling includes that, then this is a smart move for Nokia. If not, I would question the value."