Marconi's share price collapse has made the British telecoms group a prime target for a takeover, its chief executive admitted in newspaper interviews today.
Mr George Simpson predicted that Marconi would have to "play some part" in the consolidation of the turbulent telecoms industry.Whether it was via a merger or a takeover remained to be seen.
Earlier this week Marconi warned that profits may halve this year and that it had to axe another 4,000 jobs on top of 3,000 already announced.
The warning and the way it was issued - after a whole day in which trading in Marconi shares was suspended - led to its stock plummeting by more than 50 per cent on Thursday.
Mr Simpson predicted "widespread consolidation" in the telecoms sector, first among network operators and then among equipment makers such as Marconi.
"I think we are going to see consolidation, and in the short term our scale is going to be smaller than these other guys," he told the Sunday Telegraph.
"Clearly we are aware of the opportunity/risk of a takeover."
Analysts suggest Cisco, the US technology giant, would be among those most interested in Marconi.
AFP