[free port of Manaus]
hi daniel,
thanks for posting the press release on the orctf modem plant in Manaus, Brazil... you must have access to good news feeds, as i still have yet to find that one... seems likely this press release was timed as a lead-in to the Telexpo 99 trade show (3/23 to 3/26)...
find it interesting that orctf seems to be keeping the news local to s. america... as discussed previously orctf has been active in s. america as far back as 95 tho with low volume til last year in q3 when tamir mentioned that they were starting to get "nice orders to s. america in hdsl and adsl"
guess those orders look promising enuf to invest in local manufacturing... would think one of the challenges of this market would be financing/payment..
along those lines the other parties concerned could probably be a help... Istelcom who will have a minority stake, is an integrator of telecommunication systems, and is a member of the Claridge Group ... The Claridge Group is an investment firm controlled by Canadian billionaire Charles Bronfman, who owns more than 25% of Koor ... which is Israel's largest industrial conglomerate... and i believe Koor controls telrad and has big pieces of both ecilf... and tadiran...
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the bronfman clan sounds like stuff for a movie (and i hear one has been made: "Whisky Man").. the patriarch Samuel Bronfman (1889-1971) was the son of Russian Jewish immigrants...who lived his early years in a mud hut on the Canadian Prairies... ended up acquiring Joseph E. Seagram & Sons of Waterloo, Ont. during American prohibition .. and has been described as enigmatic, a devoted family man, a legendary philanthropist, and authoritarian egotist with an explosive temper... grandson recently spearheaded purchase of MCA/Universal Studios... etc etc
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shlomi is the person to comment on potential implications for orctf (if any) of claridge's involvement in the brazilian venture... one question which comes to mind is whether longer term Istelcom might be more interested in pushing their brethren and orctf's competitor ecilf for xdsl? Istelcom does do business with ecilf in brazil already (but i don't think xdsl)...
Splice was also mentioned as an orctf distributer and potentially involved in the modem plant, "but the role of Splice is not defined yet." Splice is short for Splice do Brásil Telecomunicações e Eletrônica Ltda. They also sound like players:
"Established in 1971, SPLICE do Brasil is a leading equipment and turnkey solutions supplier in the Brazilian telecommunications market, and is a major supplier to TELEBRAS, the state-owned telecommunications holding company. Serving governmental and private wireline and cellular operators, SPLICE offers a wide range of products from metal cable technologies to optical fibers, satellite and wireless communication equipment. SPLICE products are sold separately and as part of turnkey solutions."
also really like the bosch news... will post some thoughts eventually... did you notice the part in the recent globe's article that dt had "commissioned" orctf and bosch to develop this equipment and required that they keep quiet "for the past year"... and i guess they picked the right co. for as you know these guys can sure keep a secret... ;)
and here's hoping that new adsl chip is sampling..
bye
s
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