While some have been led to believe (in the aftermath of the Bay Networks takeover) that Nortel is some sort of high-tech company, Nortel's primary rôle is the manufacture of payphones with no actual coin-return button. Nortel (aka Northern Electric, Northern Telecom) used to be owned in part by the local 'phone company, occupying a place similar to that of AT&T's Western Electric. The distinctive "Number, please?" heard when turning the crank on a Canadian telephone wouldn't be possible without Northern Electric technology.