Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Nokia passes up AlcaLu opportunity; Rostelecom Q3 results; Huawei scores in Saudi, builds finance nerve center in UK; Czech 4G spectrum auction.
Polish carrier Netia has been preparing for an upgrade to 400 Gbit/s with a trial of Coriant's hiT 7300 DWDM gear that will enable it to expand its network capacity to 12 Tbit/s. The alternative fixed-line operator, which is planning to upgrade its transport network to support greater volumes of video and data traffic, put Coriant's Flexigrid ROADM technology through its paces to run 400Gbit/s signals adjacent to 10Gbit/s signals on a point-to-point long-haul connection. For more details on the trial and the conclusions, see this press release.
Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) may well be looking at pursuing new opportunities following shareholder approval of the sale of its handsets division to Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT), but bidding to buy the mobile or IP-related bits of Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) isn't on the agenda just yet, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Last month Bloomberg cited a Helsinki-based analyst who predicted that such a deal was on the cards. (See Euronews: Will NSN Buy AlcaLu's Mobile Unit? and Nokia: It's Really Happening.)
It seems as though pay TV and broadband are the way forward for Russian operator Rostelecom , if its third-quarter results are anything to go by. Reuters reports that while revenues in those areas rose 27% and 8% respectively, revenue from local telephony services fell 3% and in mobile services by 6% in the face of fierce competition. Overall its sales rose 2% to 78.2 billion roubles in the quarter.
Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. has landed a four-year managed services contract with Saudi Telecom Co. (STC) , providing operations and maintenance as well as network performance management for STC's mobile, microwave, and core networks. The deal extends a working relationship that dates back to 2000. (See Huawei Wins Managed Services Deal at STC.)
It's a busy day for the Chinese giant: Huawei has also announced the opening of its Global Finance Centre of Excellence in London's financial district. The center, which will manage Huawei's global finance risks, is part of a wider £1.3 billion commitment investment in the UK. (See Huawei Opens Global Finance Center in London and Huawei Unveils UK Investment Plan.)
Newcomers had no luck in winning spectrum in the Czech Republic's 4G auction, reports Reuters, as incumbents Telefónica Czech Republic A.S. , T-Mobile Czech Republic a.s. and Vodafone Czech Republic a.s. grabbed all that was on offer, raising 8.5 billion crowns ($420.44 million) for state coffers in the process.
Marco Patuano, the recently appointed CEO of Telecom Italia (TIM) , met up with labor union leaders on Tuesday in an attempt to reassure them about the future of the company in a time of upheaval. In particular, he told them that the "functional separation of the infrastructure" remains part of the masterplan. See this press release for more details. (See Euronews: T Italia Spins Off Fixed-Line Unit and Euronews: Telecom Italia Boss on the Brink.)
— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading
