2001 - Alcatel and Lucent first attempt to merge to create one of the world's largest telecom equipment makers but talks fail over who would take control of the combined business.

December 2006 - Discussions between Alcatel and Lucent, culminating in a merged business with a market capitalisation of €30 billion.

May 2007 - The company marks its first quarter as a merged entity by announcing a €13 million loss.

July 2007 - Alcatel-Lucent reports a second quarter loss of €336 million.

October 2007 - The merged company unveils €258 million in third quarter losses, and announces plans to cut 16,500 jobs across the group.

The board at Alcatel-Lucent is forced to reaffirm support for Patricia Russo, chief executive at the group.

January 2008 - Fourth quarter losses reach €2.58 billion.

February 2008 - Alcatel-Lucent scraps its dividend.

April 2008 - Losses at the group continue, reaching €181 million in the first quarter. Alcatel-Lucent forecasts sales will fall this year.

July 2008 - Alcatel-Lucent losses reach €1.1 billion in the second quarter.

Ms Russo and non-executive chairman, Serge Tchuruk, resign.

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