Harvey,
at least there is one less potential competitor for the handset market.
By the way, would you like to join my campaign to build the new Padre Stadium - in Tulsa.
Ramsey
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1998 OCT 16 (NB) -- By Staff, Newsbytes.
Lucent [NYSE:LU] may be taking another step away from the consumer
telephone business, according to a report in The Wall Street
Journal. The newspaper this morning reported that a major consumer
product joint venture between Lucent and Dutch electronics
manufacturer Philips Electronics NV may be on the verge of
disbanding.
While Philips would say only that an announcement on the joint
venture, Philips Consumer Communications, would be made next week,
The Wall Street Journal said sources told the newspaper that
Lucent, a 40-percent partner in the handset-manufacturing venture,
and Philips, a 60-percent partner, would announce they were ending
the venture.
Specifically, the Philips-AT&T joint venture was expected to become
a strong competitor in the wireless phone market, but failed to
wrest much of the market either from Motorola, the long-entrenched
provider of wireless phones to the US market, or from the major
European cellphone makers, Ericsson and Nokia.
Ericsson and Nokia, in addition to being the leading European
players, have made significant inroads in the US market against
Motorola, and stand alongside Motorola as the top three cellular
phone providers in the world.
Lucent, which comprises a number of equipment manufacturing
businesses spun off from AT&T several years ago, already has
reduced its participation in the consumer product market. Under
heavy pressure from a slew of overseas manufacturers, primarily in
Asia and Europe, Lucent predecessor AT&T over a period of years
began migrating its own phone manufacturing to overseas locations.
The company also began shifting to original equipment manufacturer
(OEM) relationships under which other companies produced
AT&T-branded phones.
Reported by Newsbytes News Network |
