Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. , Telefónica SA (NYSE: TEF), Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR), ADVA Optical Networking , Opnext Inc. (Nasdaq: OPXT), Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) and a host of international names feature in today's regional news roundup.

Etisalat and Saudi Telecom Co. (STC) are just two of a number of major Middle East operators in talks with Huawei regarding managed services contracts that would see them outsource the running of their fixed line networks to the Chinese vendor, reports Reuters.

Telefonica I+D, the research and development arm of the Spanish carrier giant, has been checking out the potential of multi-layer packet-optical OA&M capabilities with ADVA and Juniper and found the extended automation, faster provisioning times, and reduced operating and capital costs to its liking. (See Telefonica Trials Automated Multi-Layer Network .)

Still with Juniper, the vendor's PTX5000 Packet Transport Switch has been deployed by The London Internet Exchange Ltd. (LINX) as part of a major capacity upgrade. (See Juniper Makes Its Packet-Optical Move.)

A consortium of seven operators, including KPN Telecom NV (NYSE: KPN), Telefonica Digital and VimpelCom Ltd. (NYSE: VIP), have forged an alliance that aims to reduce the complexity and cost of managing international M2M (machine-to-machine) services. At the heart of the alliance's technology efforts is the Jasper Wireless Inc. Control Center. (See M2M's Magnificent Seven.)

Dutch research network SURFnet has achieved a "record-breaking" transmission distance of 3,300 kilometers during a 100 Gbit/s coherent field trial on a looped circuit between Amsterdam's National Supercomputing Center and the CERN nuclear research facility in Geneva. The field trial deployed Opnext's OTS-100FLX subsystem. (See SURFnet, Opnext Claim 100G Record and Opnext Snubs Private Equity, Sticks With Oclaro.)

Nokia's share price has dipped below €1.50 for the first time since 1996, notes Reuters. The troubled Finnish giant's stock was trading at €1.46 in late morning trading on the Helsinki exchange Tuesday, giving it a market value of just less than €5.5 billion (US$6.77 billion). (See Nokia Cuts 10,000 Jobs, Restructures, Alarm Bells for AlcaLu, Nokia, Euronews: Nokia Cash Burn Freaks Analysts and Nokia's Nightmare Scenario .)

— Ray Le Maistre, International Managing Editor, Light Reading