Ericsson CEO says pursuit of Reliance Communications dues sent ‘strong message’

Barcelona: Ericsson’s successful legal action against Reliance Communications (RCom) over unpaid bills showed the Swedish gear maker’s determination to ensure that service providers get what’s due to them.
“We were sending a strong message that if we are providing services, we should get paid,” CEO Börje Ekholm said. “If we just fold over, it has implications for others that maybe we don’t need to pay these guys because they will not do anything anyway. We are satisfied that Indian courts look at it this way as well.”
On February 20, India’s Supreme Court upheld a contempt petition filed by Ericsson against RCom chairman Anil Ambani for not paying the Swedish company, despite having the money to do so. The court threatened to send the businessman to jail for three months if he didn’t cough up what was owed in four weeks.