Free (Iliad Group) Selects Cisco for First Mass 'Fiber-to-the-Home' Deployment in France

Cisco(R) (NASDAQ:CSCO) announced today that Free (Iliad Group),
the leading triple-play over broadband operator in Europe, is to roll
out the first and largest optical fiber network in France based on the
Cisco Internet Protocol Next Generation Network (IP NGN) architecture
and using Cisco Ethernet fiber-to-the-home (E-FTTH) technology.

According to Free's plan, the first phase of the fiber project
will connect more than 2 million people in the city of Paris via the
largest fiber network in Europe. Free announced that residents will
have access to broadband speeds that could exceed 50 megabits per
second(1) for 29.99 euros per month, and benefit from advanced
services such as high-definition IPTV, video on demand, multimedia
communication and Web 2.0 services. The fiber network offers the
potential of virtually unlimited symmetrical bandwidths, where
upstream and downstream traffic can flow at the same speed, which is
currently unique for mass-market broadband services.

Michael Boukobza, chief executive officer of Free, said: "We are
building a network of the future for our users and by working with
Cisco, we can bring the future closer. With the ongoing debate about
fiber access platforms, we have made a clear choice and decided on
Ethernet point-to-point FTTH architecture because it is future proof
and maximizes return on such an important infrastructure investment.
Other options would not have set us so clearly apart from the
competition. By taking fiber optic links directly to the home, we can
be sure that France will continue to be at the forefront in technology
and applications for the next few years, and even the next few
decades!"

"Today's announcement demonstrates Free's commitment to
continuously innovate and maintain its lead in the triple-play
market," said Thierry Drilhon, managing director, Cisco France and
vice president, Cisco Europe. "We have seen increasing interest in
FTTH networks throughout Europe and this is an important endorsement
for Cisco's IP NGN technology approach. With the Cisco ServiceFlex
design and Ethernet point-to-point architecture, we have armed our
new-generation E-FTTH solutions with more of the features that users
require, including high bandwidth, high availability, high security
and low latency, all backed up by performance assurance, especially
when the subscriber's usage profile is difficult to predict in terms
of bandwidth and 'burstiness'."

The passive optical fiber network that connects the central office
or points of presence (PoPs) to the home is the highest-valued asset
in new-generation networks. Cisco E-FTTH solutions protect the
investment in the network's active layers by removing the need to
install active components out in the field.

Free will deploy Cisco Catalyst(R) 4500 Series Switches as the
E-FTTH access platform at its new optical PoPs with 10 Gigabit
Ethernet uplinks to its core network to make optimum use of the
increased capacity provided by the Cisco CRS-1 Carrier Routing
Systems.

About Free

Free is a subsidiary of Iliad. The Iliad Group is a major player
in the Internet and telecommunications markets in France through its
subsidiaries Free (the leading alternative broadband operator with
2,076,000 broadband subscribers as at 30/09/2006), Onetel and Iliad
Telecom (fixed telephony operators) and Kertel (prepaid phone cards),
as well as IFW (WiMax). The Iliad Group was established in 1991 and
currently has more than 1,500 employees. The Iliad Group is listed on
the Euronext Paris Eurolist under the mnemonic code ILD.

About Cisco Systems

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news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. Cisco equipment in
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(1) Performance depends on many factors, conditions and variables,
including volume of network traffic, building materials and
construction, operating system used, interference and other adverse
conditions.