China Telecom Awards Telecom IP Contract to Alcatel Lucent: Telecoms equipment giant Alcatel Lucent has confirmed that it has signed a centralized purchasing contract with China Telecom, China’s largest telecoms operator, to provide it with and maintain an IP backbone across ten provinces. The contract is part of the $700 million framework agreement recently signed between the two companies. Upon completion China Telecom will be able to deliver advanced broadband services to its subscribers.