Alcatel-Lucent

LAS VEGAS--The connected car is a big theme at CES, but most companies rely on a user's mobile phone for an in-car data connection. However, this is not so with Alcatel-Lucent, which demonstrated a heavily modified Toyota Prius with its own LTE data connection. This broadband connection enables many in-care functions, including vehicle-to-vehicle communication, a Wi-Fi hot spot, and various Internet applications including our old friend Pandora.

LTE, or Long Term Evolution, is a term for a 4G wireless network being implemented by Alcatel-Lucent for Verizon. Although data speeds vary greatly depending on conditions, according to Alcatel-Lucent, LTE's … Read more

A federal appeals court on Friday affirmed a lower court ruling that Microsoft infringed on a patent owned by Alcatel-Lucent, but said the jury award of $358 million in damages was excessive.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C., upheld a ruling that the patent at issue was valid and had been infringed on, but said there was not sufficient evidence to support the calculation of damages. The question of damages was sent back to the district court.

The patent, whose application was originally filed by engineers at AT&T, covers a … Read more

Alcatel-Lucent said on Monday at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that it has joined with other companies to form a consortium to encourage the development of the next generation of wireless communications technology.

Called NG Connect--the "NG" stands for "next generation"--the consortium will bring together device manufacturers with content providers, application developers, and other interested parties, the Alcatel-Lucent said.

The consortium will be looking at different next-generation technologies, such as 4G, long-term evolution (LTE), and other ultra high-bandwidth technologies, Alcatel-Lucent said in a statement.

Other companies that have joined the consortium include Samsung, HP, Buzznet, … Read more

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Alcatel-Lucent on Friday announced a significant restructuring, including layoffs, as it tries to position itself for a post-recession future flavored with new technologies.

For both 2009 and 2010, the Paris-based telecommunications equipment maker aims to reduce its break-even point by 1 billion euros per year. But that's not likely to be easy--the company says it expects the market for the types of gear and services it provides to shrink by between 8 percent and 12 percent.

The cost-cutting entails layoffs, among a number of other steps. Alcatel-Lucent will be eliminating the jobs of approximately 1,000 managers and approximately … Read more

Updated 1:40 p.m. PDT, with comment from Alcatel-Lucent.

A federal appeals court has upheld a lower court ruling that Microsoft need not pay damages to Alcatel-Lucent in a long-running patent dispute in a case that could have opened up a broad range of litigation over the MP3 music format.

The appeals court, in its ruling published Thursday, agreed with a lower court that Microsoft didn't infringe on one patent in question and that Alcatel-Lucent didn't have standing to sue over the other patent.

Microsoft was initially hit with a $1.5 billion verdict in the case. … Read more

Troubled Franco-American telecom Alcatel-Lucent has tapped two new top executives in a bid to turn its fortunes around, according to reports out Monday.

Philippe Camus, a former aerospace executive at EADS, will serve as the new chairman, while Ben Verwaayen, former head of BT Group PLC, will be chief executive. The Wall Street Journal said the announcement could be made as early as Tuesday morning. Alcatel-Lucent had no comment, according to the Journal.

It came as no surprise in July when Alcatel-Lucent announced that CEO Patricia Russo and Chairman Chairman Serge Tchuruk would depart later this year. Since former rivals Alcatel and Lucent … Read more

In baseball, you get three strikes and you're out. As for technology CEOs, that depends. It depends on the magnitude and visibility of their screw-ups, the aggressiveness of the board, all kinds of things.

Sometimes it just takes one event, if it's big and hairy enough. On the other hand, I've seen CEOs swing and miss dozens of times for years on end, and they're still in the game.

Let's take a look at five recent examples of CEOs getting canned and see what we come up with:

Patricia Russo of Alcatel Lucent. It came as no surprise when Alcatel Lucent announced on July 29 that CEO Russo would step down. She had a decent run at the helm of Lucent, but the 2006 merger with Alcatel has been a disaster for both companies. This is a great example of one huge, high-visibility strike doing a CEO in. Incidentally, Chairman Serge Tchuruk is out, as well.… Read more

Alcatel-Lucent's CEO and chairman are stepping aside as the company continues to face big losses and increased competition from Asian suppliers.

The telecommunications equipment giant said Tuesday that CEO Patricia Russo and Chairman Serge Tchuruk will leave later this year. Russo will finish out the year as she helps the company look for a new CEO, and Tchuruk, who helped architect the mega-merger between Lucent Technologies and Alcatel, will leave October 1.

The company said the two executives had stepped down on their own accord. It is a move, however, that shareholders have urged for months.

And who could … Read more