Ericsson Latest Rumored Marconi Suitor
Things looked pretty bleak for Marconi after BT earlier in the year decided not to award it a £10 billion contract for equipment for a next-generation network, that instead went to 8 other firms. Marconi’s share price nosedived afterwards, and the company put itself up for sale. Chinese upstart Huawei quickly emerged as a possible buyer, a credible rumor given the two companies’ partnership. Two months later, the UK financial press now says Ericsson is the front-runner. Apparently, Ericsson wants to use Marconi’s long-running relationship with BT (and its 4,000 employees in the UK) to help fulfill its part of the BT deal to supply control systems for the network.
