Motorola Inc. said Wednesday it will split into two independent, publicly traded companies, thus separating its struggling mobile-phone business from its broadband and mobility-solutions operations.

The move comes amid a long-standing battle with activist investor Carl Icahn, who has been urging the company to shed the handset unit.

Icahn, who owns just over 6% of Motorola, has been actively seeking representation on the company's board. On Monday, he sued the Schaumburg, Ill-based company in an attempt to secure records relating to the hiring of senior executives and corporate strategy, especially as it relates to its mobile devices business.

President and chief executive Greg Brown said in a statement the spilt "will provide improved flexibility, more tailored capital structures, and increased management focus -- as well as more targeted investment opportunities for our shareholders."

The creation of the two stand-alone businesses -- expected in 2009 -- is planned to take the form of a tax-free distribution to Motorola's shareholders, resulting in shareholders holding shares of both companies.

One company will focus on handsets and the other will sell network equipment, cable TV set-top boxes and two-way radios -- businesses that are profitable and growing faster. The board is also looking for a new leader for the phone business, Brown said. That division will continue to design, manufacture and sell mobile handsets and accessories globally and licenses a portfolio of intellectual property.

Motorola said in late January that it was conducting a strategic review of its business that could lead to a separation of the handset business.

The company noted that there was no assurance the planned split, which is subject to further financial, tax and legal analysis, would occur.

At the core of Motorola's problems is its failure to hit another home run to follow its Razr phone, which was once very popular but ultimately succumbed to overexposure. It has since fallen behind its peers on third-generation, or 3G, handsets.

The company -- which recently lost its No. 2 position to Samsung Electronics Co. -- has also been hurt by the troubles at Sprint Nextel Corp. Motorola is a supplier of Nextel iDEN phones, which have lost users as customers leave the Nextel network.

Motorola has shed business divisions before, including its Freescale Semiconductor Inc. chipmaking unit. In July 2004, the company sold shares in the unit, reducing the price of the offering by a third after computer stocks tumbled. Buyout firms led by Blackstone Group LP later bought the Austin, Texas, business.

Motorola shares rose more than 10% in premarket trading to $10.82 before settling at around $10.32. - Donna Block