In other Alcatel-Lucent news: French operator SFR is upgrading its network with the deployment of AlcaLu's 1830 Photonic Service Switch converged Packet/Optical platform in combination with its 5620 Service Aware Manager (SAM); and France's industry minister has been leaning on AlcaLu in an attempt to get it to reduce the number of job cuts it will implement as part of its Shift Plan, reports Reuters. (See Alcatel-Lucent to Cut 10,000 Jobs.)

The Daily Telegraph says Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. has been forced to defend itself once again in the UK following allegations that three British government departments have expressed unease at the use of Huawei videoconferencing technology. (See Euronews: Tension Rises Over UK Security Report and Euronews: UK Spooks Back to Haunt Huawei.)

Telekom Austria AG (NYSE: TKA; Vienna: TKA) is having a bit of a reshuffle in the Balkans, moving Dejan Turk from Slovenian subsidiary Si.mobil d.d. to Serbian unit Vip Mobile, where he will be CEO and CMO as from March 1. Vip Mobile is the third-largest mobile operator in Serbia.

Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD)'s agreement to sell its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless for US$130 billion helped make it by far the biggest contributor to the rise in the UK's FTSE 100 blue-chip index last year, reports the Financial Times (subscription required). Vodafone accounted for more than 2.6 percentage points out of the overall 14.4% rise in the index last year. (See Vodafone Agrees to $130B Verizon Stake Sale.)

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading