US and Canadian courts are expected on Tuesday to approve Swedish firm Ericsson's $1.1 billion (Ôé¼770 million) bid for most of the core wireless assets of Canadian telecoms equipment company Nortel Networks.
The deal, which includes NortelÔÇÖs profitable CDMA wireless equipment operations and its next-generation long-term evolution (LTE) assets, will gain Ericsson important CDMA contracts with network operators Verizon, Sprint, U.S. Cellular, Bell Canada and Leap Wireless.
Toronto-based Nortel's operations are expected to add about $2 billion to EricssonÔÇÖs existing $2.7 billion in annual US sales. The deal will significantly expand Ericsson's footprint in the US and signifies the companyÔÇÖs strong return to the CDMA market, from which it withdrew around four years ago.
Ericsson outbid rivals Nokia Siemens and MatlinPatterson at the end of a twelve-hour auction on Friday in New York.
Nortel had agreed last month to sell its wireless technologies unit to Nokia Siemens for $650 million, before other bids were invited.
Ericsson will rename the Nortel operation Ericsson CDMA. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
Ericsson has said it will offer jobs to at least 2,500 of NortelÔÇÖs CDMA and LTE workers, about a third of whom are based in Canada.
Nortel employs 30,000 people worldwide.
