Associated Press
Ericsson Appoints New Management Team
Monday March 17, 11:46 am ET
Sweden's Wireless Equipment Maker Ericsson Appoints New Management Team
STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) -- Wireless equipment maker LM Ericsson said Monday it had appointed a new deputy chief executive and other key figures on its management team.
The Stockholm-based company said last month that CEO Kurt Hellstroem would retire in April and would be replaced by Carl-Henric Svanberg, the CEO of international lock maker Assa Abloy.
Per-Arne Sandstroem was named deputy CEO while Karl-Henrik Sundstroem was named chief financial officer and executive vice president.
They, along with Svanberg will take over as the company's new executive management team April 8 at the company's annual meeting.
"The new ... team gives us continued strong focus on our restructuring work as well as high customer focus," Svanberg said.
Sandstroem has spent 15 years at Ericsson, including stints as president of its North American market area and head of the former Business Unit GSM systems.
He also helped guide the company's massive restructuring since 2001 as chief operating officer, and he will continue to perform that task.
Sundstroem, most recently vice president and general manager of the global services unit, is replacing Sten Fornell, who will leave the company at the end of the year.
Ericsson, along with other telecom-equipment makers have been hard hit as operators and providers cut back spending on their current networks and pushed back plans for new, faster networks in a bid to preserve cash.
The company has been cutting costs and trimming its work force. When it started in 2001, the company employed 107,000 worldwide. By the end of 2002, Ericsson employed more than 64,600.
Separately, the company said it settled a patent dispute with InterDigital Communications Corp., a move that helped it avoid a trial this spring.
Under the agreement, Ericsson will pay InterDigital $58 million for its use of technology developed by the American company in mobile phones and equipment that it has sold for cell phone networks.
