Lucent Technologies plans to sell metropolitan optical networking gear to the Korean National Railroad (KNR) and the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG), the companies announced Wednesday. Korean National Railroad will purchase 70 of Lucent's "Lucent WaveStar ADM 16/1" systems and install them by the end of this year. The purchase is part of its effort to connect KNR's 1,885 stations and replace its copper network by 2005. Through the new optical network, KNR hopes to offer new services to passengers, such as online ticketing and railroad information.
SMG and Lucent, which closed a WaveStar deal last year, have agreed to expand the existing optical network that links buildings throughout Seoul. SMG expects Lucent's equipment to help reduce the cost of renting phone lines by $2.8 million a year. Financial terms of the two deals were not disclosed.