UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE 14A
PROXY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 14(A) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Filed by the Registrant |X| Filed by a Party other than the Registrant|_|
Check the appropriate box:
|_| Preliminary Proxy Statement
|_| CONFIDENTIAL, FOR USE OF THE COMMISSION ONLY (AS PERMITTED
BY RULE 14A-6(E)(2))
|_| Definitive Proxy Statement
|_| Definitive Additional Materials
|X| Soliciting Material Pursuant to ss.240.14a-12
LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES INC.
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(NAME OF REGISTRANT AS SPECIFIED IN ITS CHARTER)
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(NAME OF PERSON(S) FILING PROXY STATEMENT IF OTHER THAN THE REGISTRANT)
Payment of Filing Fee (Check the appropriate box):
|X| No fee required
|_| Fee computed on table below per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(4) and 0-11.
1) Title of each class of securities to which
transaction applies:
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2) Aggregate number of securities to which
transaction applies:
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3) Per unit price or other underlying value of transaction computed
pursuant to Exchange Act Rule 0-11 (Set forth the amount on which the
filing fee is calculated and state how it was determined):
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4) Proposed maximum aggregate value of transaction:
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5) Total fee paid:
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|_| Fee paid previously with preliminary materials.
|_| Check box if any part of the fee is offset as provided by Exchange Act Rule
0-11(a)(2) and identify the filing for which the offsetting fee was paid
previously. Identify the previous filing by registration statement number,
or the Form or Schedule and the date of its filing.
1) Amount Previously Paid:
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2) Form Schedule or Registration Statement No.:
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3) Filing Party:
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4) Date Filed:
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The following material was used by company employees and other advisors
following the public announcement of the entry into a merger agreement by
Lucent Technologies Inc. and Alcatel:
RIVERSTONE TALK POINTS
>> The U.S. Bankruptcy Court of Delaware has granted an order approving
Lucent's purchase of the assets of Riverstone Networks, a current partner
and provider of carrier-grade Ethernet routing solutions for the
telecomunications industry. The purchase price under the amended agreement
is $207 million. The court order is subject to an objection period of 10
days following its entry, which occurred on March 23, 2006. In addition,
the closing of the transaction remains subject to the receipt of certain
regulatory approvals in Germany, which the company anticipates could happen
early in April. Lucent received Federal Trade Commission approval of the
purchase on March 17, 2006.
>> Lucent is focused on providing customers with next-generation networking
solutions that help them evolve their networks to become more efficient and
to offer a growing variety of compelling, useful new services to their
customers.
>> In order to expand our revenues and profitably grow the business, we have
been aggressively pursuing opportunities in next-gen transport solutions,
including carrier-grade Ethernet, to help service providers deliver
high-margin multimedia transport services to their subscribers.
>> Riverstone Networks is already a Lucent partner. Riverstone products are
currently being sold as part of our multimedia transport solutions.
Customers are familiar with how the Riverstone portfolio complements the
Lucent portfolio, and recognize the role the Riverstone portfolio can play
in the further evolution of next-generation network architectures.
>> This purchase also gives Lucent the opportunity to more efficiently bring
solutions and technologies from Riverstone into our existing portfolio.
>> In order to profitably grow Lucent's business, we continue to look at
organic development, partnerships and acquisitions. The pursuit of
Riverstone follows along the lines of Lucent's acquisition of Telica in
2004, which expanded our portfolio with a proven, scalable product that
meshed well with the next-gen solutions we are already providing our
customers.
>> In addition, Lucent is evaluating opportunities to leverage key assets and
technologies from the acquisition by embedding them into our broader
portfolio.
>> This acquisition strengthens Lucent's Multimedia Network Solutions
portfolio, and enables us to more rapidly integrate carrier-grade Ethernet
technology into our future data and optical multimedia transport solutions.
>> Riverstone products will play a key role in advancing Lucent's end-to-end
converged Ethernet/optical solutions, helping Lucent take a share of an
Ethernet carrier market estimated to be more than $7 billion per year
(Infonetics) by 2008.
>> Riverstone adds a talented, global team of approximately 400 people to
Lucent who have sold a proven product to more than 70
domestic and international customers for a wide range of multimedia and
mobility applications.
>> This acquisition brings Lucent: a carrier-grade, stand-alone Ethernet
router, an Ethernet access router and a comprehensive suite of
next-generation software that can support Lucent's Ethernet/optical
products.
SAFE HARBOR FOR FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS AND OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION
This document contains statements regarding the proposed transaction between
Lucent and Alcatel, the expected timetable for completing the transaction,
future financial and operating results, benefits and synergies of the proposed
transaction and other statements about Lucent and Alcatel's managements' future
expectations, beliefs, goals, plans or prospects that are based on current
expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about Lucent and Alcatel and
the combined company, as well as Lucent's and Alcatel's and the combined
company's future performance and the industries in which Lucent and Alcatel
operate and the combined company will operate, in addition to managements'
assumptions. These statements constitute forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such
as "expects," "anticipates," "targets," "goals," "projects," "intends," "plans,"
"believes," "seeks," "estimates," variations of such words and similar
expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements which are
not statements of historical facts. These forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and
assumptions that are difficult to assess. Therefore, actual outcomes and results
may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in such
forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties are based upon a
number of important factors including, among others: the ability to consummate
the proposed transaction; difficulties and delays in obtaining regulatory
approvals for the proposed transaction; difficulties and delays in achieving
synergies and cost savings; potential difficulties in meeting conditions set
forth in the definitive merger agreement entered into by Lucent and Alcatel;
fluctuations in the telecommunications market; the pricing, cost and other risks
inherent in long-term sales agreements; exposure to the credit risk of
customers; reliance on a limited number of contract manufacturers to supply
products we sell; the social, political and economic risks of our respective
global operations; the costs and risks associated with pension and
postretirement benefit obligations; the complexity of products sold; changes to
existing regulations or technical standards; existing and future litigation;
difficulties and costs in protecting intellectual property rights and exposure
to infringement claims by others; and compliance with environmental, health and
safety laws. For a more complete list and description of such risks and
uncertainties, refer to Lucent's Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2005
and Alcatel's Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2005 as well as other
filings by Lucent and Alcatel with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Except as required under the US federal securities laws and the rules and
regulations of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Lucent and Alcatel
disclaim any intention or obligation to update any forward-looking statements
after the distribution of this document, whether as a result of new
information, future events, developments, changes in assumptions or otherwise.
IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC
In connection with the proposed transaction, Alcatel and Lucent intend to file
relevant materials with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"),
including the filing by Alcatel with the SEC of a Registration Statement on Form
F-6 and a Registration Statement on Form F-4 (collectively, the "Registration
Statements"), which will include a preliminary prospectus and related materials
to register the Alcatel American Depositary Shares ("ADS"), as well as the
Alcatel ordinary shares underlying such Alcatel ADSs, to be issued in exchange
for Lucent common shares, and Lucent and Alcatel plan to file with the SEC and
mail to their respective stockholders a Proxy Statement/Prospectus relating to
the proposed transaction. The Registration Statements and the Proxy
Statement/Prospectus will contain important information about Lucent, Alcatel,
the transaction and related matters. Investors and security holders are urged to
read the Registration Statements and the Proxy Statement/Prospectus carefully
when they are available. Investors and security holders will be able to obtain
free copies of the Registration Statements and the Proxy Statement/Prospectus
and other documents filed with the SEC by Lucent and Alcatel through the web
site maintained by the SEC at www.sec.gov. In addition, investors and security
holders will be able to obtain free copies of the Registration Statements and
the Proxy Statement/Prospectus when they become available from Lucent by
contacting Investor Relations at www.lucent.com, by mail to 600 Mountain Avenue,
Murray Hill, New Jersey 07974 or by telephone at 908-582-8500 and from Alcatel
by contacting Investor Relations at www.alcatel.com, by mail to 54, rue La
Boetie, 75008 Paris, France or by telephone at 33-1-40-76-10-10.
Lucent and its directors and executive officers also may be deemed to
be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of Lucent
in connection with the transaction described herein. Information regarding the
special interests of these directors and executive officers in the transaction
described herein will be included in the Proxy Statement/Prospectus described
above. Additional information regarding these directors and executive officers
is also included in Lucent's proxy statement for its 2006 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders, which was filed with the SEC on or about January 3, 2006. This
document is available free of charge at the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov and
from Lucent by contacting Investor Relations at www.lucent.com, by mail to 600
Mountain Avenue, Murray Hill, New Jersey 07974 or by telephone at 908-582-8500.
Alcatel and its directors and executive officers may be deemed to be
participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of Lucent in
connection with the transaction described herein. Information regarding the
special interests of these directors and executive officers in the transaction
described herein will be included in the Proxy Statement/Prospectus described
above. Additional information regarding these directors and executive officers
is also included in Alcatel's Form 20-F filed with the SEC on March 31, 2006.
This document is available free of charge at the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov
and from Alcatel by contacting Investor Relations at www.alcatel.com, by mail to
54, rue La Boetie, 75008 Paris, France or by telephone at 33-1-40-76-10-10.