Motorola Mobility CEO Jha to get $66 m severance pay on Google buyout

PTI Updated - March 12, 2018 at 12:49 PM.

Once internet titan Google’s $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility is concluded, the cellphone-maker’s India-born CEO Mr Sanjay Jha will receive a $66 million ‘Golden Parachute’ compensation package, as his services will no longer be required.

This was disclosed in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in which Motorola outlined the compensation that Mr Jha stands to gain.

He will get $13.20 million dollars in cash and $52.47 million for his stock options and shares if the deal goes through.

The cash component of the Golden Parachute package includes $10.8 million in severance pay and a $2.4 million bonus.

The cash portion is equal to three times Jha’s base salary and bonus. Google had last month announced it will acquire Motorola Mobility in an all-cash deal worth $12.5 billion dollars, making it one of the biggest deals in the fast-growing mobile handset space.

Google had raised its purchase offer for Motorola Mobility by 33 per cent during negotiations, the filing revealed.

The deal would help Google boost its competitive edge in the mobile computing arena as well as give it access to Motorola’s range of Android operating system-based offerings.

The companies expect to close the deal by the end of this year or in early 2012 after getting various regulatory approvals.

Shareholders of Motorola will vote at a special meeting on the deal and on Golden Parachute payments to executives. The date for this meeting, however, has not yet been set.

When Motorola Inc split in two, Mr Jha was made head of the cellphone unit. At the time of the split, Motorola Mobility’s board granted Mr Jha stock and options equal to 1.8 per cent of the company, when fully vested.

The grants would have vested over several years, but they will vest immediately if the company is sold.

Published on September 15, 2011 05:35