Sources told Bloomberg that Hewlett-Packard Co was looking for buyers for some of its patents. The people with knowledge of the matter said the portfolio of patents included those related to mobile computing. HP owned intellectual property of WebOS, the web operating system for smartphones and tablets. The Silicon Valley computer maker obtained the patent for the operating system when it acquired Palm Inc in 2010.

According to the sources, HP had already approached possible buyers for patents. The sale was said to be part of the move of Chief Executive Officer Meg Whitman to bolster HP's finances. Two people who reviewed the portfolio up for sale said HP had already removed some of the restrictions about the patents. As a result, the patents would become more attractive to possible buyers. The sources also said removing the restrictive conditions would allow HP to get a higher price for patents.

Whitman rebranded the WebOS system as a wholly-owned subsidiary called Gram. Earlier this year, she sold the code of the operating system to LG Electronics, Bloomberg reported.