Nortel has received court approval for Ericsson's bid for its wireless assets, a company statement has claimed.
Although there is still some discussion in Canada that the government should step in and allow RIM to make a counter-bid, to keep the business Canadian, Nortel said that a joint hearing yesterday, it obtained orders from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware approving the sale agreement with Ericsson for Nortel's CDMA business and LTE Access assets for a purchase price of US$1.13 billion.
After Nokia Siemens Networks made the first public offer for the assets, RIM expressed an interest in tabling a bid of US$1.1 billion, but withdrew from the auction as it refused to sign up to a condition preventing it from bidding for any further Nortel assets.
Jim Balsillie, RIM's co-chief executive officer (pictured above) stated, "RIM is extremely disappointed that Nortel's world leading technology, the development of which has been funded in part by Canadian taxpayers, seems destined to leave Canada and that Canada’s own Export Development Corporation is preparing to help by lending $300 million to another bidder. RIM remains extremely interested in acquiring Nortel assets through a Canadian ownership solution that would serve the dual purpose of keeping key wireless technologies in Canada and extending RIM’s leadership in the research, development and distribution of leading edge wireless solutions, but RIM has found itself blocked at every turn."
The court clearance now means that, as announced on July 25, 2009, under the asset sale agreement, Ericsson will purchase Nortel's CDMA business, which is the second largest supplier of CDMA infrastructure in the world, and substantially all of Nortel's LTE Access. Also as part of this agreement, a minimum of 2,500 Nortel employees supporting the CDMA and LTE Access business will receive offers of employment from Ericsson.