Familiar Names Found Among Telecommunications Companies

Compiled ByDeborah Austin The list of top eight telecommunications equipment manufacturers include the same players in 2000 as it did in 1999, but their rankings shifted, says Dataquest Inc., a unit of Gartner Inc. Nortel Networks Ltd. moved to No. 1 from No. 3 -- growing more than 40% -- with leading-edge technology skills and good execution in the high-growth optical market. L.M. Ericsson Telephone Co., with strength in mobile networks, remained at No. 2. Lucent Technologies Inc. slid to No. 4 from No. 1 with the Avaya spinoff. The 2000 top eight are: Nortel, with $29.8 billion in revenue; Ericsson, $27.7 billion; Nokia Corp., $27.2 billion; Lucent, $25.8 billion; Cisco Systems Inc., $23.9 billion; Siemens AG, $22.8 billion; Motorola Inc., $22.8 billion; and Alcatel, $21.6 billion. While nearly all saw double-digit growth in 2000, expect a paring back in 2001, say Gartner Dataquest analysts -- along with slowing demand for services; reduced or delayed network and applications investments; patching rather than overhauling or replacement of enterprise networks; and customer disappearances. Gartner Dataquest provides market intelligence on sectors of the global information-technology industry. Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Conn.