nobody cares. who would buy layer 2 solutions when everything out there is layer 3. if cisco buys they will kill layer 2. so will alcatel. there are smaller ethernet layer 2 players with both pbt and mpls unlike nortel.
jds looks to be interested but they are in a worse position that ma nortel. the others cannot afford to hand out a 1.5 billion cheque. remember this will be an all cash deal not just stock.
they would have had better value by selling off the enterprise unit to microsoft. but i guess that would be too intelligent for them.
more
eBay is another place that Nortel could try. If Aunt Gerty can find a buyer for her 1972 used Tupperware set there, shopping MEN there stands a decent chance, too.
Clint
So now we have a guy on here saying nobody will buy their MEN and nobody wants their 40G/100G business. The utter ignorance of some people. SOMEBODY will buy this. Question is who. Could be a saviour. Could be a mideival executioner who just wants certain parts. And yes they should have sold off enterprise but hackney and the political clique kaibashed that.
Wolverine
Was it politics that kept NT from selling Enterprise, or the fact (?) MEN was more easily carved off? Not to discount corrupt politics, but the official story might actually be true.
exnt2
Clint if you are referring to me then explicityl say so. you must be one of thos meek Canadians. what i mean was there are not a whole lot of companies who can write a 1.5 billion cheque.
anybody buying needs to be in good shape to take advantage of portfolio. the only thing atractive is 40G/100G but thats about it. The rest is all legacy layer 2 stuff losing market share or almost obsolete. MERS 8600 come on. POS. Passport come on POS. Next Gen Ethernet. Canned. Optical 5K legacy. Smaller optical platforms. OEM'd.
It all depends upon what Nortel is willing to do. I would not buy all the legacy business unless its a fire sale. Nobody will. So the deal will have to reduce to around $1 billion or so.
also keep in mind the MEN business does not have that great margins. With the slowing market it will only get worse, meaning someone with deep pockets has to buy it.
ex_men
Was it politics that kept NT from selling Enterprise, or the fact (?) MEN was more easily carved off? Not to discount corrupt politics, but the official story might actually be true.
exnt2
Clint if you are referring to me then explicityl say so. you must be one of thos meek Canadians. what i mean was there are not a whole lot of companies who can write a 1.5 billion cheque.
anybody buying needs to be in good shape to take advantage of portfolio. the only thing atractive is 40G/100G but thats about it. The rest is all legacy layer 2 stuff losing market share or almost obsolete. MERS 8600 come on. POS. Passport come on POS. Next Gen Ethernet. Canned. Optical 5K legacy. Smaller optical platforms. OEM'd.
It all depends upon what Nortel is willing to do. I would not buy all the legacy business unless its a fire sale. Nobody will. So the deal will have to reduce to around $1 billion or so.
also keep in mind the MEN business does not have that great margins. With the slowing market it will only get worse, meaning someone with deep pockets has to buy it.
If Nortel is Looking for a MEN Buyer….
….then going to the Carrier Ethernet World Congress in Berlin this week is probably one of the best places to do it.
For more on Nortel at CEWC, check out Nortel Buzzboard.
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