Business briefs

30 Apr 2004

Including news from Nortel Networks, Finisar, Osram, Corning and more.

•  Nortel Networks has fired Frank Dunn, its chief executive officer (CEO), following an investigation into the firm’s financial reporting between 2000 and 2003. Nortel’s chief financial officer Douglas Beatty and controller Michael Gollogly, both on paid leave of absence since March 15, have also been dismissed. William Owens, one of Nortel’s directors and a former US military commander, has been appointed as Nortel’s new CEO. Due to an ongoing review of its finances Nortel is delaying the publication of its financial results for the first quarter 2004 and says that its net earnings for 2003 will be half that previously announced.

•  Finisar, the US supplier of modules for telecom networks, is purchasing Infineon's fiber-optic business in a stock deal valued at $263 million. The Infineon division employs 1200 staff and is a manufacturer of optical transceivers, lasers, detectors and plastic optical fibre components. “This acquisition will add important new product and technology platforms which should strengthen our position in our core markets as well as help us to diversify our revenue base,” said Jerry Rawls, Finisar’s CEO. “About 40% of Infineon’s business is in markets where we currently don’t compete including the automotive industry and emerging fiber-to-the-home opportunity.”

•  In response to soaring demand for glass substrates for LCDs, Corning is building a new glass manufacturing plant in the Taichung science park in Taiwan. Corning says that it expects the market volume for such glass substrates to grow 30-50% annually over the next few years.

•  Vishay has purchased a license to manufacture white LEDs and high-power surface-mount LEDs developed by Osram. The agreement will give Vishay the opportunity to make a wider range of products for the automotive industry.

•  BTG, the technology commercialisation firm, says that it is now able to offer licenses to patented chalogenide semiconductor laser technology developed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, US. The technology enables the creation of compact lasers that operate in the 2-3 micron wavelength range. A commercial prototype to demonstrate the technology is currently under development at the INO research institute in Canada and is expected to be ready by mid-2004.

•  Coherent’s Laser Measurement and Control division has appointed Pro-Lite Technology as its distributor in the UK and Republic of Ireland. The agreement comes into immediate effect and covers Coherent’s range of power and energy meters, spectrum analysers and wavelength meters as well as other items.