Marconi Strengthens Position in Chinese Market

PITTSBURGH, Oct. 26 -- Marconi, provider of hardware and software for communication and information industries, has secured a major order from China and formed alliances aimed at boosting sales of the company's optical technology throughout China.
China Telecom in Beijing is the most recent company to take part in a series of orders for Marconi's synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) equipment that are worth close to $14 million. The orders are being used for an extensive upgrade of fixed and mobile phone networks in and around Beijing, which will include the most up-to-date high-speed optical networking capabilities.
Marconi has also won orders for its SDH products worth at least $50 million over the next 15 months from the Datang Telecom Technology Co., one of China's top four manufacturers and distributors of telecom equipment. Marconi has also taken a position as senior partner in a joint venture that was set up in 1992 by Finnish manufacturer Nokia to form a new enterprise, Guilin Marconi Telecoms (GMT), designed to cater to the telecom market in China. The company, which has 108 employees and sales of close to $43 million per year, is run in conjunction with the Chinese Ministry of Information Industries.