Euronews: Ericsson Makes Video Play at TEF

Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC), Telefónica SA (NYSE: TEF), Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. , Nokia Networks , Accenture and Transmode Systems AB are among the big beasts in today's EMEA news jungle.

Ericsson has been handed a testing Service Provider Information Technology (SPIT) role by Telefónica Digital. The Spanish giant's new services division is building a Global Video Platform (GVP) to deliver all manner of video services to its fixed and mobile customers in Europe and Latin America and is using technology from multiple vendors, most notably Microsoft, as well as its own R&D labs. Ericsson, which has plenty of in-house video platform expertise from its acquisition of Tandberg TV some years back, will be the prime integrator for the GVP, providing systems integration services, a range of OSS and BSS systems and managed services. The Swedish vendor, which has been building its telecom software business with a series of acquisitions, is very keen on developing SPIT-related relationships with communications service providers (CSPs) as it sees this as the major growth area for its managed services business. (See Ericsson to Integrate Telefónica's Video Network, Telefónica, Microsoft Build Global Video Platform , Euronews: Ericsson Boasts IT Services Progress, Ericsson to Buy Telcordia, Ericsson Buys More OSS Smarts and Ericsson Gets IT.)

In another video services deal, Accenture is to develop and manage KPN Telecom NV (NYSE: KPN)'s video services for the next five years, using the Accenture Video Solution. The global services and consultancy specialist recently acquired telco video assets from Nokia Siemens Networks, the long-time supplier of IPTV technology to KPN. (See NSN Offloads More IPTV Assets, NSN Confirms IPTV Asset Sale and KPN Sticks With NSN for IPTV.)

Huawei is to invest €70 million (US$90.7 million) over five years in a new R&D center in Helsinki, Finland. Initially, around 30 employees will be hired to work on software development for smartphones, tablets and other "rich-media" devices, though Huawei expects the headcount to top 100 in time. Huawei claims to have more than 70,000 employees engaged in R&D worldwide. (See Huawei Starts Mobile Device R&D in Finland, Euronews: Huawei Buys Optical R&D Lab and Huawei's Next Move in Europe .)

Nokia Siemens Networks has jumped from fourth to second place in the worldwide LTE equipment market, passing Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) and Huawei but being pipped to the top spot by Ericsson, according to a new third-quarter report from Infonetics Research Inc. . In terms of numbers, the report says that NSN increased its LTE market share from 13 percent to 21.5 percent. (See Euronews: NSN Shuts German Services Unit, Redknee to Pay $52M for NSN's BSS Unit, How to Save Nokia Siemens's Optical Business and NSN Claims #2 Spot in LTE Market .)

Transmode, the Swedish packet-optical networking specialist, has been chosen by MS3, an independent U.K. infrastructure company, to deploy a new enterprise access network in the northern British city of Hull. Services offered by MS3 will include 10 Gigabit Ethernet. (See Transmode Wins UK Deal and Transmode Sticks to Growth Path.)

Wipro Ltd. (NYSE: WIT), the Indian IT services company, has beaten IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM), Accenture and others to a $200 million services contract with an unnamed European telecom equipment maker, according to a report in The Times of India.

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading