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Technology Stocks : Nokia (NOK) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Eric L who wrote (8657)	1/4/2001 1:00:52 PM
From: Eric L	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 34857

>> Alcatel To Start Making Cellphones in Brazil AP Online Jan 3 2001 French telecommunications giant Alcatel will start producing cellphone handsets in Brazil this year, anticipating rocketing demand as the government auctions off nine new mobile phone licenses, the company president said Wednesday. Jonio Foigel told business daily Valor that Alcatel would be investing $15 million to sub-contract cellphone production to an unspecified number of locally-based companies. Foigel did not reveal how many cellphones Alcatel would produce, but said the company would hire another 400 workers, boosting its staff to nearly 2,000. Alcatel officials confirmed the report but said Foigel was not available Wednesday for comment. The government's decision to begin adopting the GSM cellphone technology used throughout Europe and Asia is key in Alcatel's decision. Existing mobile phone licenses in Brazil use CDMA, or Code Division Multiple Access, and TDMA, or Time Division Multiple Access, technology. The first three new licenses are slated to be sold this month. The government expects to raise at least $3.4 billion from all nine licenes. Last year, Alcatel produced 25 million cellphones worldwide, making it Europe's third-largest producer and the fifth largest worldwide, Foigel said. According to the government's telecommunications watchdog Anatel, more than 750,000 Brazilians had cellphones in 1994. Last year, that number grew to 21.5 million and is expected to reach 58 million by 2005. That means competition in the sector is also growing, primarily from Alcatel's main European rivals Nokia, Ericsson and Siemens. << - Eric -