The $11.6 billion merger of equipment makers Alcatel and Lucent is a 'defining moment' for the global telecoms industry, Alcatel-Lucent CEO Patricia Russo told the Show Daily yesterday.
Russo said the 'merger of equals' would create a company of 'unparalleled capabilities' which would not only be positive in a corporate sense, but would also have positive implications for global telecommunications.
'The number of engineers in the new company is 23,000, so just the sheer capability of that investment coupled with the rationalization we'll go through will allow us to have an even more intensive research and development focus,' she said.
'There's no question that technology leadership is central for companies like ours, and I think the merger will allow us to better tie an end-to-end approach around all the domains we work in, from fixed mobile convergence to triple- and quadruple-play.'
Russo said the merger was well timed at 'the beginning of the next major wave of next-generation technology.' 'There's an awful lot of technology transitions we are at the beginning of, so the fact that we can come together at this point and influence those changes is quite timely,' she said.
The company's philosophy, said Russo, was reflected in the new visual identify or logo, which is an infinity symbol in which the letters 'A' and 'L' can also be seen. 'The symbol suggests infinite possibilities and infinite potential and infinite ambition,' she said.
Alcatel-Lucent is focused on three critical segments: advanced communications, broadband for all and business critical systems. 'Each of these is very different - whether it's helping somebody make their first phone call in a country that has 10% penetration or delivering personal services to somebody walking on the street in Hong Kong,' Russo noted.
She welcomed the fact that ITU Telecom World was being held in Hong Kong, saying it reflected the importance of the region, and China, to the future of the telecoms industry. 'The ability to participate in the China market and develop technology is clearly not only helpful for the market, but it's helpful for the rest of the world,' Russo insisted.