Moderator: Welcome Qiu, Executive Vice President of Alcatel Shanghai Bell, to visit our "President Online". I'm Xin, editor-in-chief of Communication Industry News, and I'm very happy to host today's interview.
As we know, Alcatel Shanghai Bell has always been a leading enterprise in the field of communication industry and occupies a leading position in the field of communication technology. Today, I'd like to ask Mr. Qiu to introduce the highlights of Alcatel Shanghai Bell at this year's exhibition.
Qiu: The theme of this year's exhibition is "Integration creates value". As we all know, Alcatel-Lucent is an end-to-end communication solution provider in the global industry. In this respect, we should consider what our users and operators think and what their development ideas are. They believe that it is very important to transform from a single business service provider to a service provider that can provide diversified services. At this time, as a network equipment supplier, we should provide them with a broadband network, so that they can provide as many broadband services and diversified services as possible on the broadband network.
In addition, the network should be more efficient and the cost should be reduced, so the network must be IP-based.
From these two points, we put forward the concept of convergence, which is driven by the convergence of services to realize the IP and flattening of the network. This is also the theme of our "integration to create value". Under this theme, you can see many innovative services and new networks, which embody the simple concept of IP network.
Compere: Creating value through integration has really grasped a trend in the development of the communication industry. Just now, Mr. Qiu also talked about some ideas from the business level and the network level. We also know that there are many convergence-related products in this exhibition, such as IMS and FMC. What idea did your company convey to the communication industry about its future? What do you think are the major changes in the future communication industry?
Qiu: The answer to this question is simple. In the next few years, a trend of the whole communication industry is broadband. Whether providing wireless services or providing services based on wired networks, there must be enough bandwidth for operators to ensure that they provide diversified services.
In addition, all the networks I just mentioned must be flat, simplified and IP-based. Broadband and IP are the future trends. On this basis, the network should strengthen refined management. Because if the operator only provides one channel and does not finely manage the network, it can only provide the best effect, but can not provide different customers with different levels of service. Generally speaking, Alcatel Shanghai Bell has made many contributions in broadband, IP and fine network management.
Moderator: We know that Alcatel Shanghai Bell has made a lot of efforts and achieved a lot. Can you tell us something about this? Can you introduce the bidding process of China Mobile GSM this year?
Qiu: Alcatel Shanghai Bell may have given the impression of being a traditional switching equipment manufacturer in the past. In fact, Alcatel Shanghai Bell and Lucent are very strong in fixed network, and we are the first in the transmission field in the world. According to the latest data of RHK, our market share is as high as 25%, almost twice that of the second place. In terms of access, we are also number one in the world. In the IP/MPLS marginal market, we have risen to the second place in the world. China's fixed-line market is the same, ranking at least in the top three. At the same time, in terms of mobile services, we are developing very fast. In terms of mobile business, through the merger with Lucent, we have strengthened our overall strength in CDMA technology and products, and our market position has been greatly improved through the acquisition of WCDMA business of Nortel. Together with Alcatel's original strength in GSM and WCDMA, we have now become the largest mobile equipment provider in the world.
At home, our mobile business income has now exceeded the fixed-line income, which is also in line with the market development trend. In 3 1 provinces and cities, Alcatel Shanghai Bell's equipment is used everywhere except 3 provinces.
Let me give you a number. As far as the number of carriers sold is concerned, we have increased by almost 120% this year compared with last year, which has more than doubled.
Moderator: You just mentioned that we have a strong market share in broadband, including data from some research institutions. We know that you have done a good job in broadband access and have a high market share. At present, we know that both China Telecom and China Netcom are conducting GPON fiber access experiments. What preparations does the company have in this regard? In the previous stage, we also did research on the optical communication market. With the development of IPTV, there may be new developments. what do you think?
Qiu: When you ask in time, you will ask about the advantages of our company. GPON still plays a leading role in this industry. We have been able to provide GPON's commercial equipment. In every country in the world, including the China market, we have made some experimental networks with some operators, and their performance is very recognized by everyone. Now the work is how to push to the scale market through the commercialization model. Bandwidth is very important, and what kind of bandwidth means what kind of service can be provided to end users. At present, the bandwidth provided by ADSL is relatively limited, less than 20M. 100M may be needed in the future to meet the needs of users. This is a general trend, and we are very optimistic about the future of GPON.
Moderator: We know that the World Radio Conference is being held recently. Our reporter learned that WiMAX has become a part of 3G standard. How to treat the development of WiMAX?
Qiu: In fact, WiMAX 16E has been regarded as a very advanced broadband wireless access technology and a very promising technology from its proposal to standardization. Alcatel-Lucent also has strong strength in WiMAX 16E. In the China market, we have been paying close attention to the views of the China government on WiMAX and closely following the strategic direction of the government. When it comes to WiMAX development and deployment, if it is 16D, we will have a market share of about 70%. 16E We are doing some trial networks now. I believe we will also have a good market position.
Moderator: Did you join the experimental network run by the United States?
Qiu: SPRINT's experimental network, of course we participated.
Moderator: TD-SCDMA is a topic that everyone is concerned about. Just now, we also interviewed Mr. Zuo, who was very confident in their network in Qingdao and said that there would be a skyrocketing market at the end of this year and early next year. What's the progress of Alcatel Shanghai Bell in TD network construction? What is our general attitude? What preparations have you made?
Qiu: TD-SCDMA is the 3G standard in China. As an international enterprise with dual identities under SASAC, we definitely fully support TD-SCDMA. TD-SCDMA: We are cooperating with Datang Mobile. In the newly expanded experimental network, our total supply accounts for nearly 37% of the market share of China Mobile and 50% of the market share of Qingdao. We cooperated with Netcom two years ago and achieved good results. In addition, we have a trial network cooperation with China Telecom in Baoding, and 50% of the equipment is provided by us. Generally speaking, no matter which operator we are with, we have achieved the expected results so far.
Moderator: Next, let's talk about some marketing strategies of the company. We know Alcatel Shanghai Bell is a very international company, and of course it is also a communication enterprise led by China. What kind of role is it in the internationalization strategy? What is the approximate share ratio of international and domestic markets?
Qiu: To answer your later question first, the international and domestic ratio is about 1: 1, 50%: 50%. This problem is different from other completely localized friends. Alcatel Shanghai Bell has its own characteristics. On the one hand, it is a part of Alcatel-Lucent, and on the other hand, it is an enterprise under the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. We also comply with the call of the country, go out and open up markets. But as a global member of Alcatel-Lucent, our strategic position in the whole group is also very important. At the same time, we should also cooperate with teams in various countries within the group. I can say that a lot of cooperation is with Alcatel Shanghai Bell. If this part can be included, Alcatel Shanghai will have a large overseas market share. The whole company is a chess game. Alcatel-Lucent's teams all over the world cooperate with each other, and operators can do whatever team suits them. It is meaningless to just look at the broken numbers.
Moderator: Mr Qiu said Alcatel Shanghai Bell is a very popular enterprise. What you just said is an international company, an international enterprise managed by the Central State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. When Shanghai Bell and Alcatel merged, I said at that time that if Shanghai Bell and Alcatel merged successfully, it would be a classic MBA case, which proved to be very successful. Now that you have merged with Lucent, what impact will these mergers have on the company? How to evaluate the change of current enterprise behavior? What help and influence does it have on the company's competitiveness?
Qiu Hong Rong
Qiu: This merger is in line with the trend of market development. Why? Because the competition in this market is becoming more and more fierce, especially the competition of the operators we serve is becoming more and more fierce, which leads to the increasingly fierce competition of our equipment manufacturing suppliers. If there is no merger, there will be insufficient strength, and if the scale is not large enough, there will be insufficient resources for research and development. Without R&D resources, there will be no new technology and no place in the industry. Whether Alcatel-Lucent or Alcatel-Shanghai Bell, we attach great importance to R&D investment. And some manufacturers adopt the following strategies, which are neither good nor bad, but our strategy is to be the leader of industry technology. The company must have a scale in research and development. When the competition reaches a certain level, there will inevitably be some merger actions, which is a normal market behavior. In 2002, the merger of Shanghai Bell and Alcatel was very successful. After the merger, the company's overall business diversified and its strength improved. Alcatel Shanghai Bell and Lucent China have become a unified team in operation, and our marketing platform and service platform, including product line, have also become a whole, managed by a unified leadership team in China. I'm quite confident about the merger. It's going well.
Moderator: You also talked about R&D just now. In fact, everyone pays special attention to Alcatel Shanghai Bell. One of its greatest advantages is that it can * * * enjoy the strength of the global technology library and R&D to provide excellent solutions. Please tell us something about this.
Qiu: We attach great importance to the China market at both the group level and Alcatel Shanghai Bell level. Our current strategy is that more and more R&D resources will tilt from Alcatel-Lucent to China. In addition, the comprehensive quality of engineers in China is very high, although it is not the cheapest in terms of cost. Engineers in some countries, especially in eastern Europe, including India and Pakistan, have lower labor costs. As it turns out, our R&D team in China has achieved a lot soon.
In addition, the China market is becoming more and more important. According to the number of users, the largest mobile operator is in China, and the largest fixed-line operator is also in China. Therefore, for Alcatel-Lucent as a whole, the demand for products in China market is becoming more and more important. Originally, it was brought in, but now it is to make a basic product according to the demand of this market and then go out. Therefore, we will invest more and more in the R&D team in China.
Moderator: You also mentioned this trend of integration at the beginning, and integration creates value. We know that the transformation of operators is also deepening. Just now, we communicated with General Manager Zuo. For example, they launched ICT business, which is also a very important and valuable business for transformation. What do you think of this? What is the combination of enterprises like ours?
Qiu: Our advantage is to lay a good network for them and let them provide better services and run more broadband services on this network. The network should save management, and IP can save costs. At the same time, we can also provide many ICT solutions, such as unified communication and business communication based on IMS. What's more, our current cooperative relationship with operators is not only that I provide equipment, but also that it pays me, and it is also a model of strategic partnership. We should also consider his innovative model, such as ICT mentioned by General Manager Zuo. We are all discussing exercises with them.
Moderator: You mentioned the topic of strategic partners. When I interviewed General Yuan two years ago, he also mentioned strategic partners, which is very consistent with what you said. IMS is now a matter of great concern to everyone. In some places, some overseas operators are also trying, but the overall situation is not very clear. I'd like to hear your views in this regard.
Qiu: IMS is definitely a trend, but there are still some detailed specifications and interconnection between manufacturers. Further improvement of specifications is just around the corner. However, the emergence of a new technology always takes some time to adapt to the market. IMS may be promoted on a small scale next year and on a large scale the year after.
In the field of IMS, we provide the most advanced end-to-end carrier-level solutions in the industry, which are in full compliance with the current IMS specifications. Let's prove it with practical actions. Because the real product has not been commercialized on a large scale, it is still impossible to distinguish one from another.
Moderator: Is it convenient for you to talk about your views on the whole business?
Qiu: Operators must have full services. If they can't provide full services, there will be no basis for competition, but at present, every operator is limited by some favorable conditions and external environment. But the whole thing is really important Because your end users, no matter what your network looks like, want to enjoy your all-round service. If you can only provide a single business, you may not be able to gain lasting competitiveness and market share.
Moderator: There is another topic, please introduce it. We know that we have made some efforts in CDMA in the past and cooperated with Samsung. I don't know what the situation is.
Qiu: I can't say this yet. The company is still making some considerations.
Moderator: Finally, we ask Mr. Qiu to give us your general impression of this communication exhibition.
Qiu: This time, it's very similar to the past. Manufacturers, including operators, actively participate in providing some advanced technologies and solutions for their users. But the best thing is that it's much quieter this time, because all people can really listen to some explanations and understanding quietly in a quiet environment, which is good. This is a detail, but I hope it can be kept in the future.
Moderator: Thank you for your participation in our interview. Thank you for your attention.