Ericsson, the world’s largest maker of cell phone networks, has agreed to buy Nortel’s wireless network equipment unit for $1.13 billion, according to Bloomberg.
The deal gives Ericsson a larger slice of North America’s wireless market in time for carriers to expand to LTE (Long-Term Evolution), a next-generation 4G network. The move also signals Ericsson’s commitment to the North American market, the article said.
“The Nortel unit is very profitable,” said Pierre Ferragu, a London-based analyst with Sanford Bernstein, in the report. “I was very surprised to hear that Nokia Siemens let Nortel go to Ericsson for such a low price. It will have a positive impact on Ericsson’s earnings.”
LTE looks to be a significant improvement over Verizon and Sprint’s current CDMA network here in the states. Verizon should be first out of the gate with LTE phones sometime in 2010. (Image credit: Nortel)
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