SBC Selects Alcatel To Build Fiber Network In Blockbuster $1.7 Billion Deal

In a blockbuster deal worth $1.7 million, SBC, the second largest local-telephone carried in the U.S., has selected Alcatel to build its next-generation fiber-optic IP and video network. According to the terms of the five-year deal, Alacatel, the world's largest provider of broadband equipment, will supply SBC with access and fiber technologies, IP routing and Ethernet switching solutions, as well as network systems and video systems integration.

The agreement will form the heart of SBC's Project Lightspeed, designed to deliver integrated IP Television, ultra-high-speed broadband services, IP voice, and wireless bundles of products to 18 million households by year-end 2007.

Alcatel will provide SBC with its remote 7330 IP DSLAM solution, which can support wire-speed triple play services, and multiple variations of DSL for SBC's Fiber to the Neighborhood architecture. Alcatel also provides its 7340 Fiber to the Premise (FTTP) solutions.

For delivering feature-rich IP services, SBC has selected Alcatel's 7750 Service Router and 7450 Ethernet Services Switch which will enable SBC to offer differentiated IP-based services, such as video, that require high levels of reliability and predictability.

Alcatel will serve as the network and video services integration partner for project. It will be responsible for end-to-end integration of the network and video.Alcatel is the world's leading supplier of broadband access solutions, with more than 50 million lines of DSL shipped, according to the company.

After the announcement, Alcatel stock jumped 4.8 percent to 10.62 euros on the European market.

"With this announcement, Alcatel and SBC are extending a strategic relationship with respect to the design and delivery of next generation networks and service offerings," Mike Quigley, President Alcatel North America, said in a statement. "Through our leadership in access and IP technologies, and our experience designing and integrating large-scale networks, we are privileged to be helping SBC leapfrog the competition with a new generation of feature-rich IP-based services."