Nortel may never be the giant it once was, but the company has never failed to fascinate us, as our coverage retrospective shows
And so it's come to this.
Restructuring and bankruptcy protection might not be the end of Nortel Networks Ltd. , but it's certainly the end of Nortel as we know it. Most analysts agree that pieces of the company will be sold off, and what's left won't be the technology colossus that was Nortel. (See Nortel Files for Bankruptcy Protection and Should Nortel Be Sold for Parts?)
Since Light Reading started in 2000, we've posted more than 1,700 news analyses that included substantial mentions of Nortel. Together, they trace the arc of the telecom downturn and reflect the additional punishment suffered by Nortel employees and shareholders in the wake of accounting scandals and missed opportunities.
Talk about highs and lows. It's been a house of trap doors for Nortel. Every time things start shaping up, something new – usually a Nortel CEO – causes the floor to cave in.
Don't believe us? We've got nearly a decade's worth of headlines to sift through. Pick your favorite year, and see for yourself.
Page 2) 2000: Rough Riding
Page 3) 2001: The Wheels Come Off
Page 4) 2002: Hope Stings Eternal
Page 5) 2003: Cracking
Page 6) 2004: Dunn Deal
Page 7) 2005: The Revolving Door
Page 9) 2007: On the Offensive
Page 10) 2008: Storm Clouds Gather
For Light Reading’s complete list of news stories, reports, blogs, and other content about Nortel Networks – including an RSS feed to all of our Nortel coverage – please click here.
— The Staff, Light Reading
Next Page – 2000: Rough Riding
March 2000: Nortel joins the all-optical switching craze with the $3.25 billion purchase of Xros.Nortel Buys a Monster Crossconnect
Nortel Spells Out Its Cross-Connect Strategy
Xros's OFC Splash Was All Wet
June 2000: Nortel's dominant share of the optical market extends to 37 percent.Nortel Extends Optical Lead
July 2000: Nortel decides to chase Cisco by buying up Alteon for $7.3 billion.Nortel Buys Alteon for Big Bucks
August 2000: Word has it some staffers in optical networking are defecting for startups.Is Trouble Brewing in Ottawa?
September 2000: Attacking another hot (but ultimately doomed) market, Nortel starts talking about a terabit router. Yeah, that's gonna work.Nortel Discloses Terabit Router Plans
October 2000: A sign of the times: Nortel helps customer Aerie Networks finance a $1 billion buildout. But its quarterly results show growth is slowing. Hmmm...Nortel's $1 Billion Pipe Dream
Nortel's Fright Night
Nortel's Optical Halloween
Analyst Report Defends Optical
Optical Death Greatly Exaggerated
November 2000: Fallout continues over Nortel's numbers, but CEO John Roth predicts 30 to 35 percent growth in 2001.Nortel Bashing Continues
Nortel Soothes Analyst Worries
Nortel's Roth Feels Bullish
December 2000: Xros makes it to carrier trials.Nortel 's All-Optical Switch is in Trials
Next Page – 2001: The Wheels Come Off
January 2001: Light Reading gets early word of layoffs. Nortel denies – then confirms – a staff cut of about 4 percent.Nortel to Cut 4,000 Jobs
Nortel Logs Good Quarter, Great Year
February 2001: Nortel buys an optical components facility in Zurich from JDSU. Heck, it's only $2.5 billion.Nortel Buys JDSU Plant for $2.5B
Light Reading's first in-depth interview with Greg Mumford, president of Nortel's Optical Internet division.Greg Mumford
Later, at a time when people are still surprised at such things, Nortel abruptly slashes its Q1 estimates, to $6.3 billion from $8.5 billion.Nortel's Nasty Surprise
Then, CTO William Hawe departs. It turns out he's one of a few executives who'd cashed in stock options before Nortel started going south.Nortel CTO Quits as Woes Mount
Nortel Explains "Option Activity"
March 2001: Don Smith, president of Optical Internet solutions, leaves. This paves the way for Brian McFadden to move up. Then Nortel trims its Q1 forecast a bit more and plans to cut 15,000 of its 94,000 employees. Roth, who'd predicted 30 to 35 percent growth for 2001, stops giving predictions.Don Smith Leaves Nortel
Nortel Warns of Shortfall, More Layoffs
April 2001: Vendor financing continues.Nortel Heads South
Those 15,000 layoffs? Make it 20,000.Nortel: Losses and Layoffs, Eh?
Anil Khatod appointed Nortel's first chief marketing and strategy officer.Nortel Appoints Marketing Strategist
Analysts suspect Nortel lowered its inventories by pushing products back to suppliers.Nortel: Inventory Garage Sale?
Light Reading learns Nortel has initiated a full restructuring.Nortel Does a Metro Shuffle
May 2001: With CEO John Roth due to resign in 2002, his supposed successor, chief operating officer Clarence Chandran, resigns for health reasons. Nortel launches a CEO search.Nortel's Empty Room at the Top
June 2001: Supercomm. Elton John, apparently booked much, much earlier, plays at Nortel's customer and employee event.NXTcomm History, Part III
Supercomm hangover: Q2 revenue forecast dips to $4.5 billion. And about those 20,000 layoffs? We're gonna need 10,000 more.Nortel's Nuclear Winter
Sour Grapes of Roth
Then the terabit router goes boom.Nortel 'Rightsizes' Terabit Router
And remember Anil Khatod, Nortel's first chief marketing and strategy officer? Yeah, he's already gone. Welcom Alan Kember instead. But at least Nortel's cost-cutting is done.Nortel's Marketing Chief Resigns
Nortel Finds New Marketing Chief
Has Nortel Hit Bottom?
August 2001: Universal Edge and AccessNode product lines get sold to Zhone Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: ZHNE).Zhone Acquires Nortel's Access Gear
September 2001: Wait. Cost-cutting isn't done?Nortel: More Layoffs?
October 2001: Roth gets an early nudge out the door; CFO Frank Dunn named the next CEO. Another 20,000 layoffs announced, bringing Nortel's headcount down to 44,500. Revenues drop (again).Nortel Swings Axe, Switches CEOs
Nortel: Can This Company Be Saved?
Nortel Says It Sees Clearly Now
November 2001: Nortel unloads equipment it had bought for its optical components business.Nortel Fire Sale
December 2001: Greg Mumford named CTO.Nortel Bets on Mumford
Next Page – 2002: Hope Stings Eternal
January 2002: Nortel faces the fact that its big acquisitions have come up bust. And Q4 revenues fall to $3.4 billion. But Nortel says it'll turn a profit by year's end.Nortel Buys: Reaping the Whirlwind?
Nortel: Still Shrinking
February 2002: Nortel drops its new CFO, Terry Hungle, in an effort to avoid accusations of wrongdoing. (Pssst: Wrong guy.)
Nortel CFO Leaves After Probe
CEO Dunn reiterates that Nortel will be profitable by Q4. Having lived with Nortel's predictions throughout 2001, analysts aren't so sure.Nortel Puts On a Brave Face
Light Reading determines Nortel has stopped making Arrayed Waveguide Gratings (AWGs) as the components market starts its slide into the abyss.Nortel Nixes Passive Components
March 2002: Xros aXed. And then comes news that former CEO John Roth got a raise in 2001. Naw, that won't bother anybody.Nortel Shuts Optical Switch Effort
Nortel's Roth Rakes It In
April 2002: Nortel is set to miss estimates yet again. Creditors start getting nervous and shareholders start getting upset.Nortel Issues Damage Report
Nortel Credit Gamble Pays Off
Shareholders Blast Nortel
May 2002: Another 3,500 cuts will bring Nortel's rolls down to 42,000. The optical long-haul business gets restructured, and talk emerges about selling the components division.Nortel Falls Short in Long Haul
June 2002: Brian McFadden takes control of all optical products.Nortel Unifies Optical
July 2002: Nortel names Douglas Beatty CFO.Nortel's New CFO: Beatty Who?
A class action lawsuit calls out Roth and Dunn, among others, alleging "improper accounting practices." These suits are always bogus, right?Nortel Complaint Hits Soundlessly
Q2 revenues drop to $2.8 billion. Dunn no longer says Nortel will be profitable this year.Nortel Still Not Slim Enough
August 2002: Nortel makes Fortune's list. Just not the one you'd want. Then CTO Greg Mumford predicts a future based around an optically switched core. Regarding his comments on carrier services, one reader says, "Mumford hit nail on head then hit his fingers!!"Telecom's Titanic Losers
Nortel's Mumford Savors Switches
And, in what's becoming a quarterly occurance, Nortel lowers its forecast. Another 7,000 layoffs will bring the headcount down to 35,000.Nortel's Bottom Sags
Septermber 2002: Word spreads that Nortel is selling its components business to Bookham. Nortel shutters its Coretek acquisition. And then, having already lowered estimates by 10 percent, Nortel lowers them another 15 percent.Nortel Close to Components Sale
Coretek Is Closed
Nortel Outlook Worsens
October 2002: The Bookham sale becomes official.
Bookham Buys Nortel's Components Biz
December 2002: Light Reading editors visit Ottawa, chat with Greg Mumford again, and nearly get killed.On the Job – With Mumford & Pals
Next Page – 2003: Cracking
January 2003: 360networks Inc. sues Nortel for more than $101 million in an effort to recoup the money it paid Nortel prior to settling its Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Does that count as ironic?360networks Sues Nortel for $101M
Nortel unveils its first upbeat quarterly financial report in quite some time. CEO Frank Dunn says he's focusing on "moving forward."Nortel Earnings Are Upbeat
Light Reading editor Scott Raynovich looks ahead to the rest of the year, and concludes: "[For Nortel] the bankruptcy risk now looks fairly minimal." We should have asked him then to look forward another six years...
2003 Predictions
February 2003: A Nortel success story. Or should that be, a Nortel succession story?
Nortel Targets Carrier VOIP Migration
The recently installed general manager of Nortel's optical networks business, Philippe Morin, pitches the company's new long-haul DWDM platform to cash-strapped carriers. Morin certainly knows about long-haul – in 2009, he'll still be the head of Nortel's optical business.
Nortel Beefs Up Long-Haul DWDM
March 2003: It's time for OFC 2003 (which has a nice ring to it if you say it out loud), where Nortel was showing off Gigabit Ethernet linecards for its OPTera multiservice switches. State-of-the-art stuff!!
Nortel Beefs Up Ethernet Attack
April 2003: Good news and bad news for Nortel. It made a profit in the first three months of the year – its first quarterly profit since 2000 – but its revenues were on the slide.
Surprise! Nortel Earns a Profit
May 2003: It's fair to say Nortel still has something of an edge in the wireless market...
Nortel's $300M EDGE
MCI gives Nortel's Class 4 replacement softswitch its seal of approval. That's worth having, isn't it? Oh...
MCI Vouches for Nortel's VOIP
July 2003: Another quarter, another encouraging set of numbers, especially when compared to the figures being handed out by Lucent. Say, things are really looking up!
Nortel Still Profitable in 2003
August 2003: Concerns are raised about the job security of Nortel's North American staff as the vendor ramps up its offshore development efforts in India. "Ottawa remains our primary R&D facility," says a spokeswoman.
Nortel Beefs Up Offshore Development
September 2003: And it's not only Nortel's R&D that's heading overseas...
Nortel's Summer Abroad
Meanwhile, Nortel lands a whopping $1 billion-plus deal with Verizon Wireless . Ah, those were the days.
Nortel's Roaming Action
An important moment for all vendors: Analyst Steve Levy declares that things are, at last, looking up for the telecom equipment sector. Where'd he go?
Lehman: Telecom Downturn Is Over
October 2003: Heavy Reading notes that carriers are heading for converged IP/MPLS networks, and that, while Nortel is well placed with its optical portfolio and is solid in ATM, it's "talking about continuing developments in MPLS." Only the talk wasn't followed by the walk...
Incumbents Converge on Convergence
The cracks start to appear. Nortel mentions the need for some accounting restatements as it reports another quarterly profit, saying it will make things clearer in November once its re-filings were ready to submit. Please don't mention "hindsight" just yet.
Nortel Keeps to Profit Path
November 2003: Nortel re-files a whole host of financial forms, and then slips away quietly while everyone tries to figure out what the hell it is they're talking about.
Nortel Refiles Results
Time to identify the most influential folk in the telecom industry, something that, we noted, Light Reading hadn't done for absolutely ages because, and we quote, "the last time we fiddled with the list, George Bush was the president and the U.S. was at war with Iraq." Anyway, we had Nortel's CTO at #4.
Top Ten Movers and Shakers in Telecom
December 2003: Light Reading reveals that Nortel is being run by Fastolph Hardbottle.
Hardbottle Dreaming
Next Page – 2004: Dunn Deal
January 2004: Industry rumor links Nortel and core router vendor Avici Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: AVCI; Frankfurt: BVC7). Later, Nortel's share price leaps more than 19 percent as it lands a monster VOIP equipment deal from Verizon. And the quarter ends with numbers that "blew the doors off analysts' expectations." Woohoo!Nortel/Avici: Getting Together?
Nortel Soars on Verizon VOIP Deal
Avici, Nortel Get 'Strategic'
Nortel Scores in Q4
February 2004: Having sold its DLC business in 2001, Nortel gets back into the fixed broadband market via strategic alliances with three partners: Calix Inc. (NYSE: CALX), ECI Telecom Ltd. , and Keymile AG . A sound move, at least on paper.Nortel Gets Back Into Broadband
March 2004: Alarm bells start ringing as Nortel delays the filing of its 2003 10-K report, saying it will probably have to restate its 2003 earnings and even redo some of the previous restatements. Stock falls 9 percent. Uh, oh!Nortel Rattles Nerves
But wait, there's more! The CFO and financial controller are placed on paid leave while independent auditors check Nortel's books. Furrowed brows appear and the stock drops further.Nortel CFO Out
April 2004: The SEC initiates a formal investigation into Nortel's accounts. Light Reading notes that CEO Frank Dunn "may find himself in the hotseat, considering that prior to being CEO, he was the CFO in charge of the books during the 2000-2002 periods that involved the accounting restatements that have caused the company problems." And then someone turns the fan on high and starts flinging poo.SEC Pops In on Nortel
Canadian Regulator Probes Nortel
Nortel Fires CEO
Nortel Stock Dives on Dunn Downfall
Nortel Silent on Baffling Bonuses
Nortel Shares Fly South
Who Wins the Bumble Bowl?
As if investors didn't have enough to worry about, it seems Nortel may be paying above-market prices for some of its optical components.Nortel May Be Paying a Parts Premium
Nortel prepares to launch itself into the multiservice edge box market with Neptune, designed to include IP routing and Ethernet switching. Is the company finally ready to take on the IP big guns? (Please don't hold your breath at this point.)Nortel's Neptune Surfaces
May 2004: "When Nortel sneezes, Bookham catches a cold."Nortel to Bookham: Timberrr!
The wraps come off the Neptune multiservice edge router, or MPE 9000, but already there are feature introduction issues.Neptune Arrives
Hasta la Shasta, baby!!Nortel Denies Shunning Shasta
Along with another printer cartridges invoice and the offer of an amazing deal on 12-inch stuffed crust meat feast pizzas, Nortel gets another unwelcome item in its snail mail in-tray.Nortel Gets Federal Subpoena
Attendees at a major Nortel User Group conference play a new game called "Spot the Senior Nortel Executive." No one wins.Nortel Bigwigs Miss User Conference
Turns out Frank Dunn didn't exactly exit the building when he was sacked. He remained as a member of the board for a further 23 days! His replacement soon turns up.Dunn's Done With Nortel
Nortel Hires a Statesman
"No, we are NOT buying Starent!"Nortel Scotches Starent Rumors
June 2004: Basically, it's anyone's guess what's going on in the Nortel accounting department as the restatement process rumbles on.Nortel Leaves All Doors Open
Wireless Key to Nortel's Allure
We're talking manufacturing facilities, not shrubbery...Nortel Sells Plants, Supplies Update
July 2004: Nortel's new management starts to get tough with the gang that cooked the books.Nortel Wants Its Bonuses Back
Nortel begins its Grand Indian GSM Adventure, but the warning signs regarding margins are there for all to see (retrospectively): "Nortel has emerged as the lowest bidder," a Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL) executive tells Reuters. The deal is announced a few weeks later.Nortel Named in Big Indian Deal
BSNL Splits GSM Deal
There are no "material developments" to report, states Nortel. With the exception that business sucks, of course. That was material enough for the stock to take a 15 percent hit.Nortel: Material Margin Madness
August 2004: Summertime blues hit the Nortel HQ, as does another shareholder lawsuit.Nortel Update May Include Layoffs
Nortel Tries On a New Suit
Problems Mount-y Up for Nortel
Nortel Cuts 3,500 Jobs
September 2004: Nortel restates its restatement statement. You dig?Nortel Restates Delay of Restatement
Nortel's financial troubles are sooooooo bad that CEO Bill Owens is in line for only a $2.7 million paycheck. I mean, how's a guy supposed to live?Nortel's Owens Joins Fat Cat Club
Never mind the historical numbers. The current ones are looking grim, as Nortel warns of an expected Q3 shortfall. Meanwhile, North America feels the brunt of the 3,250-employee reduction and Nortel stays tight-lipped about a potential hook-up with Korea's LG Telecom .Nortel Sees Light Revenues, Slow Growth
Nortel Details Layoff Plans
Nortel Hushes on LG Deal
October 2004: So begins the CTO conveyor belt, as Greg Mumford makes way for Brian McFadden.McFadden In, Mumford Out as NT CTO
Another month, another missed deadline.Nortel Misses Halloween Target
November 2004: "This is the way. This is Nortel."Nortel Seeks Marketing Makeover
Nortel: Financial Stuff Really Complex
Nortel: No Delisting Actions Yet
December 2004: Nortel preps the market for a deadline-busting announcement, teases it a bit more, and then puts everyone in a grumpy mood to end a disastrous year.Nortel: We Can Hit a Deadline!
Jan 10 Is Nortel's F-Day
Nortel's Numbers Disappoint
Next Page – 2005: The Revolving Door
January 2005: Nortel leaves it right up to the wire to file its restated 2003 accounts. Now, how about 2004's numbers? Also, Nortel finally unveils partnerships to address the Chinese mobile market.Nortel Files 2003 Financials
Nortel Teams on Chinese 3G
Nortel Confirms LG Deal
February 2005: As Nortel prepares to install a new, permanent CFO, the first numbers from 2004's quarters hit the streets with a dull thud. Meanwhile, there's no let-up for former or current execs, as CEO Bill Owens is the subject of replacement rumors and a number of disgraced ex-Nortel bodies are sued for their ill-gotten gains.Nortel CFO, Controller Step Aside
Nortel's Retro Quarters
Nortel Sues Former Executives
Nortel's CEO: Next to Go?
March 2005: As some semblance of normality returns, Nortel has some encouraging optical contract news. And CEO Owens tempts a former Cisco man to be COO, effectively the No. 2 spot in the management hierarchy.Nortel Scores Comcast Coup
Ex-Cisco Exec Named Nortel COO
Nortel starts to catch up with itself, filing its 2004 third-quarter report, though the outcome is a $259 million loss.Nortel Details Q3 '04 Loss
Here's one to discombobulate you – reports link Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. with Nortel, though in a partnership capacity only. The Chinese giant later says it was misunderstood. Or something.Report: Huawei Talking to Lucent, Nortel
Huawei Dampens Deal Talk
Six months is enough time to make an impact, isn't it? Brian McFadden gets palmed off with a unique post – he becomes CRO! Gary Kunis, ex of Cisco, becomes CTO.Nortel Changes CTO – Again
April 2005: Nortel spends $448 million on PEC Solutions to buy a significant position in the government services market.Nortel Goes to Washington
May 2005: Fourth-quarter results roll in, and CEO Bill Owens proclaims, "Nortel is playing to win!"Nortel Reports Q4
June 2005: First-quarter financials show signs of stability, though Nortel moans about the pricing pressures caused by "newer competitors, particularly from China." Then, suddenly, Nortel's COO and new CTO quit following disagreements over "management styles and business views."Nortel Posts Q1 Loss
Nortel COO Resigns
June 2005: Neptune, the multiservice router unveiled more than a year ago, is yet to hit commercial terra firma.Neptune Nears Earth
August 2005: Nortel pleases with its second-quarter numbers, giving Bookham Inc. (Nasdaq: BKHM; London: BHM) a lift, too. Then Nortel develops its partnership with Korea's LG into a full-blown joint venture.Nortel's Pretty Penny
Bookham Shows Signs of Recovery
Nortel, LG Sign JV
September 2005: Nortel makes its WiMax play courtesy of partnerships with Airspan Networks Inc. (Nasdaq: AIRN) and LG as it gears up to launch its own mobile WiMax platform. Then CEO Bill Owens visits London, and maybe wishes he hadn't.Nortel Teams on WiMax
Nortel CEO: We Blew It on DSL
October 2005: Owens out. Mike Zafirovsky in. Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) is not too happy.Nortel Names Zafirovski New CEO
Analysts: Moto Won't Stop Zafirovski
Nortel, Moto Settle on Zafirovski
November 2005: Bill Owens bows out with better-than-expected sales and confidence in the Asia/Pacific market.Nortel's Owens: Krazy About Korea
Then the clearout begins...McFadden, Spradley out at Nortel
Nortel's Clent Came & Went
December 2005: Cable + optical = a welcome holiday gift for the new CEO. And Zafirovski opens his Nortel M&A account with an enterprise security acquisition.Cisco, Nortel Score Comcast Wins
Nortel Takes Tasman for $100M
Next Page – 2006: Mike Z. Builds His Dream Team
January 2006: Nortel boss Mike Z. continues his cost-cutting plan by bringing in some new faces (well, new to Nortel, anyway).Nortel Appoints New VP
Nortel's New Faces Face Tough Task
Nortel Appoints EVP
February 2006: Nortel and Huawei form a joint venture and bid on a big telco GPON deal. Nortel's other broadband partner, ECI, says its deal with Nortel didn't amount to much, so it starts unraveling its Nortel relationship and looking for other, more significant, North American broadband partners.Nortel, Huawei Form JV
Nortel & Huawei: Broadband Buddies
Nortel, Huawei Bid on GPON
ECI: Nortel Didn't Deliver
Nortel shells out a load of cash to settle some outstanding shareholder lawsuits. And Mike Z.'s cost-cutting measures continue as he adds more former G.E. managers to the payroll.Nortel Takes $2.5B Hit
Nortel Settles Lawsuits
Nortel Appoints CPO
Nortel Appoints New Exec
Zafirovski Adds Another GE Exec to Nortel
Nortel Poaches Juniper Strategist
Mike Z. outlines his strategy, with IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem), IPTV, and WiMax cited as R&D priorities. The CEO then tells in investor crowd: "We're at ground zero... We're digging ourselves out of a hole."Nortel CEO Maps Out His Vision
March 2006: Financial restatements become as much a part of Nortel culture as casual dress Fridays.Nortel Delays, Restates
Nortel Still Haunted by Accounting Woes
Nortel Clarifies Restatement Review
Nortel and partner Minerva Networks Inc. start to make some noise in the world of IPTV middleware and applications.Nortel, Minerva Team on IPTV
Nortel, Minerva Find IPTV Partners
Nortel Touts IPTV
April 2006: Some WiMax success!Nortel Bolsters WiMax Position
Nortel Trials German WiMax
Nortel provides some status updates, tips its hand on its M&A interests, and continues its cost-cutting strategy by, yes, appointing more former G.E. executives to the management ranks.Nortel Provides Status Update
Nortel CEO: We're Ready to Deal
Nortel Names CMO
Nortel Names Services Prez
May 2006: More managers are shuffled around at Nortel. BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) starts to show interest in Nortel's controversial Ethernet technology, Provider Backbone Transport (PBT).BT Likes Nortel's New Ethernet Flavor
Nortel Shuffles APAC Execs
June 2006: Nortel's cost-cutting measures continue as it adds a CTO to its management payroll.A Roese Is a Roese Is a New CTO
As Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) and Siemens AG (NYSE: SI; Frankfurt: SIE) successfully hook up, everyone starts getting jumpy about Nortel's strategic direction.Post Nokia Siemens, Whither Nortel, Others?
Is Nortel the Old Maid in Telecom M&A?
July 2006: Nortel and Microsoft promote the cause of unified communications.Nortel Sees $1B From Microsoft Alliance
Nortel, Microsoft Team Up
Chief Strategy Officer George Riedel puts his mop aside long enough to tell us about his four buckets of responsibility at Nortel:
August/September 2006: Nortel's sells its UMTS business and related assets for $320 million – a bargain by many estimates – and vows it will be a leader in the 4G market.Alcatel to Buy Nortel's UMTS
Alcatel Snags Nortel 3G Unit
Analysts: Alcatel Got a Bargain
Zafirovski: We'll Get 4G Right
{column}October 2006: PBT continues its winning streak. Nortel invests in muni wireless and quickly claims market leadership – "claims" being the operative word.Nortel's PBT Debuts in China
Nortel Invests in Muni Wireless
Nortel Claims Muni Wireless Lead
November/December 2006: Nortel rounds out the year by orchestrating a stock split. (Later, the shareholders would split, too.) And the company continues to make WiMax and wireless broadband progress, even while its shareholder suits drag on and on in court.Nortel Implements Split
Nortel Up 870%
Chunghwa Uses Nortel WiMax
Nortel, Toshiba Trial WiMax
Nortel's $2B CDMA Bump
Nortel Nears Shareholder Settlement
Next Page – 2007: On the Offensive
January 2007: UMTS is gone, but BT commits to PBT and IPTV buzz continues to grow. Meanwhile, word spreads that Nortel might swap its GSM business for the Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) PBX business.ALU Completes UMTS Buy
Nortel, Siemens Win PBT Deals at BT
British Cuisine
PBT Gathers Support
Nortel, AlcaLu in Asset Swap?
Sources: Nortel Planning IPTV Acquisitions
February 2007: Peter Currie steps down as CFO and 3,000 more get the axe. Zafirovsky explains why Nortel thinks 3G is so yesterday. Nortel finds an IPTV partner. And, in scandal news, a Nortel exec pleads guilty to assault.Nortel CFO Leaves (Again)
Nortel Slashes Jobs
Nortel CEO: 3G Can't Cut It
Ericsson, Nortel Push on IPTV
Nortel Man Pleads Guilty
March 2007: Those restated 2004 and 2005 earnings? We'll have another look at those, please.Nortel Restates the Restated
Nortel continues to amass IPTV partners, but it buries Shasta.Nortel & LG Prep New IPTV Set-Top
NDS Joins Nortel's IPTV Party
Nortel Mothballs Shasta
Finally, the SEC files fraud charges against former CEO Frank Dunn, former CFO Douglas Beatty, Michael J. Gollogly, and MaryAnne E. Pahapill.SEC Charges Ex-Nortel Execs
April 2007: The former Bookham CEO tells Light Reading how Nortel "nearly killed us." Share and share alike. Elsewhere, PBT takes hold at BT.Georgio Anania, Ex-CEO, Bookham
BT Pressures Vendors Over PBT
May 2007: For a change, Nortel offers up good news with its quarterly earnings and goes on the offensive.Nortel Prelims Surprise the Street
Nortel Loss Narrows
Nortel Preaches Hyperconnectivity
Nortel Says 40-Gbit PBT Coming Soon
May/June 2007: Nortel takes a shot at buying Avaya Inc. but loses out to private equity firms.Should Nortel Buy Avaya?
Avaya Close to Deal
Avaya Agrees to $8.2B Takeover
The SEC finally fines Nortel for its accounting scandal, but not as much as expected.
Nortel Faces SEC Fine, Says Report
The Optical Multiservice Edge (OME) 6500 gets a makeover that includes trendy Ethernet + optical technology.
Nortel's Noisy With Optical Opportunity
At NXTcomm, or whatever it's called this year. John Roese, CTO, talks about smart applications and application-aware networks.
Scott Wickware, VP of carrier networks, pledges love for 4G, including WiMax.
And, Nortel starts its Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem, promotes PBT some more, and explains its IPTV strategy and its end-to-end offering.Nortel Pushes PBT Pact
PBT Parties On
Nortel Eyes IPTV Prospects
July 2007: BT puts PBT to use. Meanwhile, not every PBT win is as glamorous.BT Sells PBT-Based Backhaul Service
Nortel Wins Dakota PBT Contract
August 2007: Nortel's president for North America prepares to move on and Zafirovski gets in a buying mood as Q2 revenues disappoint. Also, WiMax takes on added importance.Joannu Leaves Nortel
Nortel's Z-Man Hints at M&A
Nortel Falls Short in Q2
Nortel's Big WiMax Bet
Nortel and Tellabs?Nortel Takes a Look at Tellabs
September 2007: Nah.Tellabs Still Stands Alone
More SEC charges come down, this time against four former VPs. And look who's checking out PBT now.SEC Charges Four More Ex-Nortelers
Deutsche Telekom Flirts With PBT
October 2007: Nortel gets a new CFO, and PBT continues its marketing mystique. But the month ends with Nortel paying out a $35 million SEC settlement.Nortel's New Money Man
PBT vs MPLS: Round VII
LR Names 2007 Leading Lights Winners
Nortel Does Deal with SEC
November 2007: A profit! Growth in 2008! Things are finaly looking up. For real this time. No, really. Also, the OME and PBT make their mark on the month.Nortel Edges Into Profit
Nortel CEO Sees 2008 Growth
Nortel Preps New PBT Switch
Nortel Takes 40-Gig to Verizon
PBT Cost Claims Questioned
BT Counters PBT Claims
December 2007: With Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) pushing telepresence hard, Nortel reminds us it's there, too.Cisco, Nortel Tee Off in Telepresence
And Vonage Holdings Corp. (NYSE: VG), which has been having troubles of its own, gets sued by Nortel and quickly settles.Vonage Sued Again
Vonage Settles More Patent Disputes
Next Page – 2008: Storm Clouds Gather
January 2008: The year starts on a downer: Fujitsu Network Communications Inc. , not Nortel, wins a closely watched Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) optical contract.Report: Fujitsu Wins Verizon RFP
February 2008: Rumors sprout of a wireless joint venture between Nortel and Motorola. Light Reading and others point out that this would be like Oscar Madison inviting Felix Unger to move back in.Nortel, Moto in JV Talks?
MOTO & NT: Again?
More on MOTO & NT
Later, CTO John Roese gets stuck on the train talking about 4G (top video) and puts in a plug for moving from 2G straight to 4G (bottom video).
{column}And, while revenues for 2007 come in at $10.95 billion, Nortel makes plans for another 2,100 job cuts and 1,000 job relocations (to lower-cost regions). CEO Mike Zafirovski clams up about possible acquisitions. But Nortel does think it can get 20 percent of the carrier Ethernet market within four years. (Sounds as if they're high on PBT.)Nortel Slashes 2,100 Jobs
Nortel: Don't Say M&A
Nortel Aims for Ethernet Profits
March 2008: In a crowded IPTV market, Nortel decides its focus will have to be on applications. In the crowded optical transport market, the company talks up 100-Gbit/s. Meanwhile, Nortel's new 40-Gbit/s cards for the OME 6500 are kept deeply secret. (Except, they're advertised on the top of Light Reading's home page.)Nortel 'Applies' Itself in IPTV
Comcast, Nortel Put 100G to the Test
Nortel's 40G Secret
Nortel Trots Out 40Gig
Nortel Wins Next-Gen Neos Contract
April 2008: Nortel cuts down on "late life-cycle" products. Cracks appear in the PBT foundation.Nortel Updates R&D Strategy
BT Reconsiders PBT Plans
May 2008: In case Nortel is feeling too good about itself, Mark Sue of RBC Capital Markets has some encouraging words. (He'll later move his target stock price to $0.) But, warring factions within BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) start debating the usefulness of PBT.Nortel Hell
BT Still Coy on Ethernet
BT's PBT D-Day
May/June 2008: BT declares it's going with MPLS and relegating PBT to the bench. Nortel and Heavy Reading point out that plenty of other Tier 1s are interested in PBT. Verizon turns out not to be one of those Tier 1s, but it likes PBB just fine.PBT Sidelined at BT
Nortel: There's More to PBT Than BT
Analyst: PBT’s Not Dead Yet
Verizon Also Shunning PBT
Nortel Wins PBB Deal With Verizon
June 2008: The Mounties come for former CEO Frank Dunn.Ex-Nortel Execs Charged With Fraud
August 2008: CDMA squeezes Q2 sales, but Nortel remains on target.CDMA, Charges Knock Nortel
August 2008: As hinted a year ago, Nortel goes shopping. Novera Optics for WDM-PON! Pingtel Corp. for unified communications! DiamondWare for... whatever they do!LG-Nortel Buys Novera Optics
WDM-PON Faces 10G Challenge
Nortel Buys Pingtel
Nortel Buys DiamondWare
September 2008: Nortel has been lapping up 40-Gbit/s wins for some time, the lastest being BCE Inc. (Bell Canada) (NYSE/Toronto: BCE). Then – SHOCKER! – Nortel says it's trying to sell the Metro Ethernet Networks (MEN) division that includes PBT and 40-Gbit/s transport.Nortel Rolls On With 40-Gig
Nortel to Sell Carrier Ethernet, Optical Biz
More good news: Nortel says revenues in 2008 will be lower than in 2007. Stock falls 40 percent. Reaction to the MEN announcement spreads rapidly. There are plenty of possible buyers, but the likely one is the name many people don't want to hear.Nortel Plunges on New Forecast
What's Nortel Worth?
The Heavies Weigh In on Nortel
Nortel's Philippe Morin
Why Huawei Should Buy Nortel's MEN
Huawei Seen as Likely Nortel Suitor
October 2008: Nortel finds a taker for WDM-PON. And Verizon recruits Nortel for 100-Gbit/s optical networking.Dutch Do WDM-PON
Verizon Adds Nortel to Its 100G Club
Verizon's Wellbrock: 100G Is Needed
November 2008: As the world economy capsizes, Nortel adds 1,300 more layoffs. "Survive" becomes a key word; a sense builds that Nortel is approaching its crepuscle.
Nortel Culls 1,300 Jobs, Loses $3.4B
Crunch Time for Nortel
December 2008: Word gets out that Nortel has researched its options for bankruptcy. The stock, already sub-$1 in the U.S., plunges 25 percent.Nortel's New Chapter
Nortel's Not Bankrupt Yet
Now What's Nortel Worth?
More fun: Huawei may be moving in. There goes the neighborhood.Is Huawei Moving Closer to Nortel?
Finally, Nortel ends the year on an "up" note, showing off 100-Gbit/s Ethernet technology. And three suiters are reportedly eyeing the MEN division.Nortel Shows Single-Slice 100GE
Nortel: M&A Update
2008 Top Ten: Nortel News
2009? For Light Reading’s complete list of news stories, reports, blogs, and other content about Nortel Networks – including an RSS feed to all of our Nortel coverage – please click here.
— The Staff, Light Reading
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