Kirkland& Ellis has advised Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd on its $409 million investment in a joint venture with Shenzhen-based smartphone maker Coolpad Group Ltd, represented by DLA Piper.

The joint venture, announced late on Tuesday, will look to combine Qihoo 360's Internet and software know-how with Coolpad's experience making smartphones, under the brand of Dazen. Qihoo 360 will hold a 45 percent stake and Coolpad will own 55 percent.

Qihoo is the owner of China’s second-largest online search engine, and is following other technology companies including Baidu Inc. to increase the investment in mobile sector as the county sees a jump in smartphone users. 

Kirkland’s Hong Kong corporate partners David Zhang and Frank Sun led the team with assistance from Hong Kong corporate partner Jamii Quoc and Chicago intellectual property partner Min Wang.

“This is one of the key initiatives we are taking to strengthen our position in Chinese mobile Internet and further establish ourselves as a leading mobile Internet platform in China,” Hongyi Zhou, chairman and chief executive officer of Qihoo 360, said in the statement.