Empresas y finanzas

TDC and iBasis Announce Strategic Outsourcing Agreement for International Voice Services



    iBasis (NASDAQ: IBAS), a KPN affiliate, and TDC, the leading
    telecommunications company in Denmark, today announced that the
    companies have reached an agreement that will make iBasis the
    exclusive provider of international voice services for TDC for a
    five-year period. iBasis will pay TDC approximately $10 million in
    cash, while the outsourcing arrangement is expected to generate
    approximately $80 million in new annual revenue for iBasis. TDC will
    become a preferred partner for terminating iBasis traffic into the
    Nordic region. Other financial details of the agreement are
    undisclosed.

    The outsourcing arrangement closely follows iBasis´ transaction
    with Royal KPN, N.V. in October 2007, which resulted in the
    acquisition of KPN Global Carrier Services by iBasis, effectively
    outsourcing KPN´s international voice business to iBasis. Combining
    KPN Global Carrier Services with iBasis has enabled iBasis to become a
    leading platform for international voice outsourcing by giving the
    company far greater scale, advanced features for mobile traffic, and a
    more complete premium quality product portfolio.

    Upon completion of the agreement, which is pending consent from
    competition authorities, iBasis will acquire the voice-related assets,
    contracts, office rental and employees of TDC subsidiary TDC Carrier
    Services U.S., which will be fully integrated into iBasis.
    Approximately 130 non-Nordic international wholesale voice customers,
    as well as all of TDC´s interconnection and bilateral agreements for
    inbound and outbound international phone calls will be transferred to
    iBasis. TDC will maintain its Nordic customer base and its pan-Nordic
    reach, and will benefit from becoming iBasis´ preferred partner for
    termination of international traffic throughout the Nordic region.

    The agreement affects approximately two billion international
    voice minutes annually including captive outbound traffic from TDC´s
    retail services to non-Nordic destinations and inbound and transit
    traffic from non-Nordic countries. According to Telegeography 2007,
    approximately eight billion minutes of international voice traffic
    flow in and out of the Nordic region annually.

    Intense competition in telecommunications is driving carriers
    worldwide to focus their resources on the implementation of innovative
    technologies and the development of compelling services that are
    highly valued by their consumer customers. TDC continues to invest
    massively in IT and fixed and mobile network technologies to deliver
    the highest quality TV, telephony, and broadband services in Denmark
    and through its subsidiaries in other Nordic countries. The
    convergence of network technologies and services provides TDC exciting
    market opportunities and requires increased focused on the development
    of consumer and business services.

    "TDC has always been committed to delivering the highest quality
    of service for our fixed and mobile customers. The most efficient way
    for us to continue to provide reliable, high quality international
    voice services while addressing innovative technology initiatives such
    as fixed/mobile convergence is to establish a strategic partnership
    with a wholesale partner that specializes in outsourcing international
    voice services," said Ole Hvelplund, COO, TDC Wholesale. "We selected
    iBasis as the most qualified carrier, due to its focus on
    international voice, its expertise in IP, and particularly its
    combination with KPN Global Carrier Services."

    "Carriers are increasingly recognizing that they can focus more
    effectively on meeting the challenges and opportunities of their core
    retail business by outsourcing the commoditized international voice
    business to specialized wholesale providers like iBasis," said Ofer
    Gneezy, president and CEO of iBasis. "Unlike most wholesale providers,
    international voice is our core business, and because of the
    efficiencies of scale we´re able to leverage, iBasis is uniquely
    positioned to be the outsource solution for incumbent carriers like
    TDC."

    The agreement, which is subject to the approval of relevant
    competition authorities, is expected to close in Q1 2008. Until the
    agreement is officially completed, the companies will continue to
    conduct business independently.

    About TDC

    With nearly eight million customers, TDC is the leading provider
    of communications solutions in Denmark and a strong player in the
    Nordic business market. The company has evolved from a traditional
    provider of landline and mobile services into a dynamic provider of
    modern communications solutions. In all key markets in Denmark, TDC
    will continue to be the clear front-runner, and it is TDC´s goal to be
    the most efficient telecom operator in the Nordic region, providing
    the best coherent services on all terminals and networks, anytime,
    anywhere. The company´s shares are traded on the Copenhagen Stock
    Exchange.

    About iBasis

    Founded in 1996, iBasis (NASDAQ: IBAS) is a leading wholesale
    carrier of international long distance telephone calls and a provider
    of retail prepaid calling services and enhanced services for mobile
    operators. iBasis customers include KPN, KPN Mobile, E-plus, BASE, and
    many other large telecommunications carriers such as AT&