VeriSign to sell off mobile units

Network infrastructure developer VeriSign Inc. reportedly plans to divest a series of business units, possibly including its mobile messaging and content delivery divisions, to focus its business on securing online transactions as well as overseeing the ".com" and ".net" domain name registries. VeriSign is expected to announce its plans during a Wednesday meeting with analysts. In an interview with the Associated Press, CEO Bill Roper said the firm plans to sell businesses where it's not the clear market leader and focus on areas where it enjoys dominance. According to Roper, VeriSign will sell its mobile transactions infrastructure unit and its telecommunications routing business, although he added the company has not selected all of the divisions it will shed, nor has it settled on their respective price tags. "We're getting a lot of interest," Roper told the AP. "It's not a matter of these being cats and dogs that nobody's interested in. It's just a matter of … we might not be the best home for those businesses." Roper did not specifically address VeriSign's stake in mobile content firm Jamba, which it owns in conjunction with News Corp.

For more on VeriSign's mobile future:
- read this Associated Press article

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