The pot of gold at the end of the wireless rainbow - a.k.a. China's implementation high-speed 3G networks - will likely happen within the next three years, according to government officials. For wireless suppliers such as Nortel, Ericsson, Lucent and Siemens, China's 3G project represents the last major new business opportunity. As a result, there will be enormous competition - lower margins, modest profits - to see who can win the biggest chunk of the deals. There are rumors, however, China is delaying its 3G launch so domestic suppliers can get up to speed on China's local 3G standard, TD-SCDMA.
In other Nortel news, it looks like the media may have over-reacted to plans by Nortel and IBM to establish a joint R&D facility. In a Nortel press release issued late yesterday afternoon, it appears to be a major strategic development and a way to seriously reduce R&D costs. While it could become something significant down the road, the initial plans only involve 30 existing employees. Nortel said the number could climb as the new entity works on new projects. Let's check back in a year and see if anything serious materializes.