Ericsson sells off its government division

Ericsson (Nasdaq: ERIC) concluded that while even though it had the right goods to serve the U.S. government's complex technology and IT needs, it might be better to put into another more focused company's hands instead.

Right before the new year, the Swedish telecom giant sold its entire stake in Ericsson Federal Inc. (EFI) to private equity firm Tailwind Capital for an undisclosed amount.

Counting the Department of Defense (DoD) as one of its anchor public sector customers, Ericsson may be selling EFI, but it's not leaving the public sector behind altogether. The new company, which has been renamed Oceus Networks, will continue to sell Ericsson's technology and support services to federal government customers.

Emil Nilsson, CFO and COO of Ericsson's North American operations, said in a release that "Oceus will be fully focused on the federal sector and the partnership brings us enhanced ability to offer the latest standards-based solutions to the U.S. federal government."

To maintain consistency for the public sector customer base, EFI's employees not only joined Reston, Va.-based Oceus Networks, but Douglas Smith will also continue as President and CEO of the new company.

For more:
- see the release

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