Motorola, still planning to split into two companies, is now considering the option to split into three, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

The original plan for a two-way split would separate the mobile handset unit from the rest of the business, now called Home & Networks Mobility.

The three-way split would separate the Home & Networks Mobility unit, as well . The “home” unit consists of the company’s cable operations; the “networks mobility” segment includes radio products for the enterprise market.

The key to any such deal, according to the WSJ’s unidentified sources, is that the cable business, while contracting during the economic downturn, is still generating an operating profit, which makes it an attractive acquisition target on its own.

For any one of a number of large competitors, most of which are based outside the U.S., buying the unit would represent an automatic position in the hard-to-crack North American market.

Motorola’s “home” unit is based on Motorola’s old General Instrument acquisition.