Is Nortel Prepping a Major Sale?

Nortel Networks Ltd. could be about to sell two of its major business divisions, according to media reports.
The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday that Nortel is in talks to sell its enterprise and wireless business units, which accounted for a combined $6.7 billion in sales in 2008, the publication said.
Ever since Nortel filed for its restructuring on January 14 -- a plan that included a bankruptcy filing in the United States -- some analysts have suggested the wireless division would make an attractive purchase for a rival.
The report suggests Nokia Networks might be a potential bidder for Nortel's wireless assets.
The enterprise division and the optical business -- which includes well-regarded 40-Gbit/s operations -- have also been mentioned as selloff candidates. (See Should Nortel Be Sold for Parts?, Nortel Files for Bankruptcy Protection, and Nortel Rolls On With 40-Gig.)
The WSJ listed Avaya Inc. and Siemens Enterprise Communications -- a joint venture of Siemens AG (NYSE: SI; Frankfurt: SIE) and private equity firm Gores Group LLC -- as being interested in the enterprise unit.
Nortel's already sold off its Layers 4 through 7 business -- the former Alteon Networks -- to Radware Ltd. (Nasdaq: RDWR). It tried putting the Metro Ethernet Networks (MEN) division, which includes that 40-Gbit/s franchise, up for sale in September, but drew no takers. (See Nortel to Sell Carrier Ethernet, Optical Biz, Nortel to Hold MEN, and Nortel to Offload Data Gear to Radware.)
— Craig Matsumoto, West Coast Editor, Light Reading
The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday that Nortel is in talks to sell its enterprise and wireless business units, which accounted for a combined $6.7 billion in sales in 2008, the publication said.
Ever since Nortel filed for its restructuring on January 14 -- a plan that included a bankruptcy filing in the United States -- some analysts have suggested the wireless division would make an attractive purchase for a rival.
The report suggests Nokia Networks might be a potential bidder for Nortel's wireless assets.
The enterprise division and the optical business -- which includes well-regarded 40-Gbit/s operations -- have also been mentioned as selloff candidates. (See Should Nortel Be Sold for Parts?, Nortel Files for Bankruptcy Protection, and Nortel Rolls On With 40-Gig.)
The WSJ listed Avaya Inc. and Siemens Enterprise Communications -- a joint venture of Siemens AG (NYSE: SI; Frankfurt: SIE) and private equity firm Gores Group LLC -- as being interested in the enterprise unit.
Nortel's already sold off its Layers 4 through 7 business -- the former Alteon Networks -- to Radware Ltd. (Nasdaq: RDWR). It tried putting the Metro Ethernet Networks (MEN) division, which includes that 40-Gbit/s franchise, up for sale in September, but drew no takers. (See Nortel to Sell Carrier Ethernet, Optical Biz, Nortel to Hold MEN, and Nortel to Offload Data Gear to Radware.)
— Craig Matsumoto, West Coast Editor, Light Reading
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
sponsor supplied content
Educational Resources Archive
FEATURED VIDEO
UPCOMING LIVE EVENTS
February 7-9, 2023, Virtual Event
February 15, 2023, Virtual Event
March 15-16, 2023, Embassy Suites, Denver, CO
March 21, 2023, Virtual Event
May 15-17, 2023, Austin, TX
December 6-7, 2023, New York City
UPCOMING WEBINARS
February 7, 2023
Optical Networking Digital Symposium - Day 1
February 9, 2023
Optical Networking Digital Symposium - Day 2
February 14, 2023
Achieve Your Growth Potential with Next-Gen Content Delivery
February 15, 2023
Digital Divide Digital Symposium
February 16, 2023
SCTE® LiveLearning for Professionals Webinar™ Series: Getting the Edge on Edge Computing
Webinar Archive
PARTNER PERSPECTIVES - content from our sponsors
How 5G Thrives ASEAN Digital Economy
By Huawei
Capitalizing On 5G Innovation To Deliver Breakthroughs At The Edge
By Kerry Doyle, sponsored by ZTE
All Partner Perspectives