Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) holds the lead position in the $10 billion network managed service market, followed by Nokia (NYSE:NOK) Solutions and Networks and Alcatel-Lucent (NASDAQ: ALU), according to ABI Research. The firm based its ranking on how the vendors rate when it comes to a combination of implementation (market traction) and innovation (managed service as competitive advantage) criteria. Ericsson dominates with a 36.6 percent market share in managed services and has more than 1 billion subscribers under its care. Huawei is expected to have a projected 22.9 percent market share for the end of 2013. ABI said that will nudge Huawei just ahead of NSN, which has a 22.1 percent market share. However, ABI granted top innovation leadership kudos to Alcatel-Lucent. "Alcatel-Lucent's focus on equipping its customers with competitive advantage, coupled with its focus on automation and cloud delivery, positions it as a most formidable challenger," said the research firm. For more, see this ABI release.