8:15 AM -- Now, as it faces unprecedented corporate and cultural perception challenges in multiple markets, Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. needs to do everything it can to build a business reputation of which it can be proud. (See China Lashes Out at 'Cold War Mentality', Huawei Hits Back, Huawei Denied German Bid and Australia's (Safe) Bet Against Huawei.)

A lot of good work can be undone very quickly, especially by acts that enforce negative impressions. So you have to wonder why a company as well resourced as Huawei can't manage to develop its own promotional materials.

It might not be the biggest transgression in the world, but it sends out all the wrong signals.

Earlier this year Nokia Networks cried foul when it spotted a lot of similarities between some of its marketing materials and those distributed by Huawei. (See NSN Sticks It to Huawei.)

Now Austrian vendor Kapsch CarrierCom AG has felt compelled to highlight what appears to be not only a near-carbon copy of its marketing materials for a recent industry event, but the re-use of some Web code.

Sabina Berloffa, vice president of marketing at Kapsch CarrierCom, made her views quite clear on her company's website -- see Kapsch vs. Huawei: Find the differences -- after Huawei issued promotional materials that not only resembled Kapsch's in practically every respect but which also included a hyperlink to Kapsch's contact details.

No steps forward, then, and one big step back...

— Ray Le Maistre, International Managing Editor, Light Reading