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What a way to start the new year.  It is expected that the handset division of Motorola will suffer major layoffs this week, as high as an astounding 50 percent of the total handset operation.  Moreover, Motorola will not have a booth at this year’s CTIA, the biggest wireless trade show event in the United States.

How much trouble is Motorola in?  It is expected that the company will only introduce a dozen new cell phones in 2009.  This is a fraction of the amount that has been standard for the company over the years. 

The good news is that other divisions of Motorola should not be affected by the layoffs.  This includes the set top box and networking equipment.  As far as smartphones, they will be based around the Google Android platform, which is a technology that Moto has invested in with hopes that it would improve the handset division.  Motorola was hoping to rebound from weak third quarter sales, but the holiday season did not meet expectations.

Read [PhoneScoop]