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Lucent To Spend $4.5B On R&D This Year
(10/21/98 10:36 a.m. ET)
By Kelley Damore, Computer Reseller News
ATLANTA -- With governmental restrictions gone, Lucent will continue to grow its infrastructure by investing a whopping $4.5 billion in R&D this year, according to Lucent chairman and CEO Richard McGinn.
Earlier this month, financial restrictions imposed when Lucent spun off from AT&T ended, sparking speculation on what companies and/or technologies the Murray Hill, N.J.-based networking giant would pursue.
McGinn said the company will continue to look at interesting technology. "We don't have an acquisition strategy, but are rather interested in acquiring technology and distribution," he said.
"I believe a business model needs to be focused on organic business growth augmented by technology," he added. Lucent, he said, has acquired 10 companies in the past 30 months, but he would not talk specifically about any acquisition. "We're a start-up," he said.
McGinn called his No. 1 competitor, Cisco, "the best selling machine in the industry today."
Asked if there was room for both companies, he said, "This business will be $650 billion by 2001. We are the largest in the world, and we only have 7 percent of the total market. There's room for everyone. If we do our job, we'll be among the leaders."
McGinn made his remarks at the NetWorld + Interop show here in Atlanta.
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