The blood on the snow stemming from the bankruptcy and restructuring of Nortel Networks continued today, with Alvarion Ltd. posting a $4.8 million net fourth-quarter loss.
The WiMAX equipment maker enjoys contracts around the world for the 4G technology but was out of luck when it came to realizing $2.4 million in revenue from equipment sales to the bankrupt Nortel in the quarter. Alvarion wrote off the cost of Nortel-related equipment, which impacted the vendor's margins in the quarter.
The two had an agreement in place for Alvarion to supply its WiMAX equipment to Nortel, but when the Canadian vendor filed for Chapter 11 last month it decided to axe its WiMAX operations.
Even so, WiMAX revenue was up 21 percent to $43.9 million year over year for the quarter, and for all of 2008, WiMAX revenue set a record at $171 million, and accounted for 61 percent of overall company revenue.
The vendor has plenty of business in the hopper, said Alvarion president and CEO Tzvika Friedman. “While decision cycles may lengthen and funding will remain an issue, we believe opportunities for a company our size remain abundant. ... Our goal for 2009 is to improve profitability for the year, even as growth slows temporarily due to global economic conditions,” he noted.
The posted loss comprises $3.4 million for expenses related to a cost reduction program. Alvarion cut 11 percent of its work force in December.
Net income for the quarter was $119,000, down from $3.1 million last year at this time.
As for guidance, Alvarion expects revenue to be in the range of $65 million to $73 million for the first quarter.
