Sunday, November 22, 2009

“Ciena takes Nortel unit auction to 2nd day: Sources - MoneyControl.com” plus 4 more

“Ciena takes Nortel unit auction to 2nd day: Sources - MoneyControl.com” plus 4 more

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Ciena takes Nortel unit auction to 2nd day: Sources - MoneyControl.com

Posted: 21 Nov 2009 10:21 PM PST

The auction for Nortel Network's optical networking and carrier ethernet business went into a second day on Saturday, after Ciena called for a break in the auction late on Friday, two sources said.

Last month Nortel Networks Corp, the bankrupt Canadian telecommunications equipment maker, said that Ciena's cash-and-stock bid, worth some $522 million, would be the stalking horse offer for these assets.

Earlier this week another source familiar with the sale told Reuters that Nokia Siemens Networks and private equity firm One Equity Partners had also jointly bid for the assets.

Ciena's stock fell sharply after it revealed the proposed deal last month, with analysts saying the rising price and possible equity side of the deal would weigh on investors minds.

Ciena's offer consisted of $390 million cash and 10 million Ciena shares.

Analysts and investors have been concerned about Ciena's offer because the U.S. networking gear maker would have to take significant pains to integrate the Nortel assets.

Although the assets are a good fit for Ciena's portfolio, the deal would weigh down operations, they said.

Nortel, once North America's biggest telecoms equipment maker, filed for bankruptcy protection in January. It is selling off its assets rather than trying to restructure.

One Equity manages $8 billion for JPMorgan in private equity investments.

Nokia Siemens is a 50-50 venture of Nokia and Siemens.

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Griffon Corp. turns 4th-qtr profit of $12.4M - Seattle Times

Posted: 20 Nov 2009 09:29 AM PST

JERICHO, N.Y. —

Griffon Corp., a communications and electronic information, building products and specialty plastics business, said it posted a fiscal fourth-quarter profit of $12.4 million, compared to a year-ago loss, even as sales fell 7 percent.

The earnings reported Thursday for the three months ended Sept. 30 were equivalent to 21 cents a share, compared to a loss of $8 million, or 24 cents a share, a year ago.

In the 2008 quarter, the company recorded a $12.9 million goodwill impairment charge related to its building products segment; excluding the item, income was $6.3 million, or 19 cents per share.

Revenue in the quarter fell to $328.2 million from $353.7 million a year ago.

Diluted shares used for per-share calculations were 59.4 million in 2009, compared to 33.4 million in 2008.

The company's total cash and equivalents as of Sept. 30 was $320.8 million. Total debt outstanding as of the end of the quarter was $179.8 million.

In afternoon trading, shares of Griffon rose $1.07, or 12 percent, to $10.12.

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D.R. Horton sees spike in 4Q orders - Burlington County Times

Posted: 21 Nov 2009 10:42 PM PST

Motorola Purchases RadioFrame Networks’ iDEN Business - Softpedia

Posted: 20 Nov 2009 11:41 PM PST

Leading provider of telecommunication solutions Motorola Inc. announced on Friday that it had purchased the iDEN business from RadioFrame Networks which, as many of you might already know, is the provider of power efficient, lower cost iDEN technology. According to the former, RadioFrame Networks' iDEN business is to be integrated within Motorola's Home & Networks Mobility business.

Motorola is already known around the world for the proprietary iDEN solution it delivers to the market, saying it managed to last courtesy of its "innovative and differentiated end-user fast dispatch service and enterprise optimized talk-groups." However, the new acquisition is expected to offer the company the possibility to enhance its push-to-talk technology roadmap plans even more.

RadioFrame's iDEN products should prove as great additions to Motorola's portfolio for multi-channel base stations, which are developed so as to "support non-contiguous spectrum allocations in the special mobile radio (SMR) business," mainly aimed at the markets outside North America. Moreover, the purchase of RadioFrame Networks' iDEN business is also said to enable Motorola to strengthen its operational capability, as well as the end-user functionality, and to enhance its expansion in a more cost-effective manner.

"For Motorola's iDEN customers, RadioFrame's base stations can flexibly manage non-contiguous spectrum channels, and its technology offers a lower cost architecture with a highly efficient use of power amplifiers, a smaller physical footprint and more flexibility in site management. RadioFrame's iDEN technology also offers lower power consumption, lowering operating expenses," the company stated.

RadioFrame Networks, Inc. is a leading provider of radio access solutions for Tier 1 mobile operators and OEM partners all around the world, and is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA. The company is seen as a pioneer in the development of pico and femtocell products, which are said to be network-friendly and can be easily deployed, while offering enhanced cost effectiveness.

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Bruno Wanted to Be Like Shel: Business Associate - NBC New York

Posted: 21 Nov 2009 11:01 AM PST

Prosecutors ended their case against former state Senate leader Joseph Bruno with testimony Friday from a friend and business associate who said he hired the longtime Republican lawmaker as a consultant for his contacts and the credibility he lent.

Bruno faces eight fraud counts in a trial that has lasted three weeks and is expected to reach the jury Monday. He's accused of using his state influence to enrich himself and deny New Yorkers his honest services.

On Friday, technology investor Jared Abbruzzese, testifying with immunity from prosecution except perjury, said Bruno first approached him about consulting while they flew home on a private plane from West Palm Beach, Fla., following a golf weekend in early 2004.

"I wanted him for his Rolodex,'' Abbruzzese said, though he rejected Bruno's initial request for $30,000 a month.

Meanwhile, Bruno's whole rationale for seeking so much money on the side reportedly had to do with his jealousy over Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's outside income, according to The New York Post.

"He started talking about Sheldon Silver and how Sheldon Silver was getting paid 40, 50, 60 thousand a month from the trial lawyers association," Abbruzzese said on the stand, reports the Post. 

The senator guided Abbruzzese on improving his skills in dealing with people, had no fixed consulting schedule and didn't produce any written work, he said.

Among the people Abbruzzese consequently met were a Florida developer building a casino, billionaire Donald Trump and a man who owned 300,000 acres in the Catskills. Abbruzzese said he was considering branching into designing golf courses with his friend the golfer Greg Norman but didn't do it.

Abbruzzese, whose main business was fixing troubled technology companies, said Bruno was paid $20,000 a month for 18 months, totaling $360,000.

The monthly cost was within the range of what he was paying 10 or 15 other consultants, he said, and he later agreed to pay Bruno $80,000 for an undersized racehorse after the consultancy ended four months early.

Bruno was initially paid by two Abbruzzese consulting companies, then by Motient Corp. and its subsidiary TerreStar Networks, which were seeking additional investors and Federal Communications Commission permission for terrestrial application of wireless satellite spectrum rights, succeeding in 2005.

"Motient was a story,'' Abbruzzese said. "I used Senator Bruno to build credibility at visual presentations.''

That included taking him along on a trip to Washington, D.C., to see officials from the Republican National Committee, he said, and at three New York City dinners that included institutional investors.

After that company's new chief executive suddenly canceled Bruno's TerreStar consulting contract, Abbruzzese said he felt "a moral obligation'' to Bruno. They were also involved in a joint thoroughbred breeding venture, and Abbruzzese agreed to pay $80,000 for a colt that never developed into a racehorse and that he ultimately gave away for free.

The defense presented a handful of witnesses who testified about Bruno's integrity and that other state officials were instrumental in grant funding awarded to Evident Technologies, another company with Abbruzzese as an investor. Bruno sponsored $500,000 in direct grants and $2.5 million for Russell Sage College to help build a business incubator space with Evident as its tenant for three years.

Bruno said during a midday recess he's a businessman and a part-time legislator and had earned his pay.

"I had a perfect right to do business based on my experience and my background,'' he said. "And there isn't any government entity ... in the United States of America that dictates the value between business parties as to what they appraise to be the value. Whatever your value is is between you and whatever person you're making the arrangement with.''

He told U.S. District Judge Gary Sharpe he was not going to testify. Closing arguments are planned Monday.

The judge told jurors they'll probably get the case then, after he instructs them about the law under which Bruno is charged.

Copyright Associated Press / NBC New York
First Published: Nov 21, 2009 2:02 PM EST

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