Updated with press release and confirmation from the two companies at the end of the post. The current economic downturn has put a chill on telecom spending, forcing everyone from Alcatel-Lucent (s ALU) to Ciena Corp. (s CIEN) to run for cover. The situation is even more precarious for startups that find themselves in desperate competition for business. Against such a backdrop, we are hearing rumors that Turin Networks, a Petaluma, Calif.-based company is in merger talks with Force 10 Networks, a San Jose, Calif.-based 10 Gigabit Ethernet switch maker.
