Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Ericsson is in pole position to buy the business support systems (BSS) unit of rival Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN)

Ericsson is in pole position to buy the business support systems (BSS) unit of rival Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN): 

Ericsson, The Swedish wireless network company is the front-runner in the process, which is in its second round, a person familiar with the process said. Other parties looking at the business include U.S. telecom software maker Amdocs Ltd. (DOX).

Nokia Siemens Networks last year began divesting a number of business units that it considers non-core and pledged to cut nearly a quarter of its staff as part of a drive to reach
profitability and position itself for independence.

NSN is in the middle of a slimming program that will also cut 17,000 of the group's workforce - or almost a quarter of the total - in an effort to improve its finances.


An internal memo seen by Dow Jones Newswires lists the systems support unit as one of several units that Nokia Siemens Networks had earmarked to be exited.

The systems support unit helps telecom operators manage billing systems and revenue management issues.

The person said France's Atos also looked at the unit but has dropped out of the process.

One news report put the unit's value at EUR300 million.

A spokesman for Nokia Siemens Networks declined to comment Monday. U.K. representatives for Amdocs couldn't be reached for comment.

Ericsson, which has been building up its business and operations support system offering over the past years, also declined to comment.

Last year, the Swedish comp
any Ericsson spent $1.2 billion on buying U.S.-based Telcordia Technologies, one of the leading providers of billing software to wireless carriers.


Source:
Dow Jones Newswires

September 03, 2012 08:08 ET (12:08 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.