Partner Communications Company Ltd. ("Partner" or "the Company")
(Nasdaq:PTNR) (TASE:PTNR), a leading Israeli mobile communications
operator, announced that on May 22, 2008 the Tel-Aviv-Jaffa District
Court ruled against the appeals submitted by Partner and two other
mobile communications operators and decided that the exemption from
obtaining building permit for wireless access devices under a provision
of the Communications Law (Telecommunications and Broadcasting), 1982
and the Building and Planning Law, 1965 did not apply to certain small
cellular radio access (wireless communication) devices deployed by the
mobile communications operators, and that a building permit must
therefore be obtained to install such devices. Partner notes that there had been a number of justice court rulings on
this matter, resulting in conflicting decisions and that this latest
ruling from the District Court is contrary to the legal opinion given by
the Israeli Attorney General on May 1, 2008. Partner believes that the
District Court´s ruling is in error, and plans
to vigorously contest it by seeking leave to appeal the ruling to the
Supreme Court. For additional details see the Company´s 2007
Annual Report (20-F), Section 3D. Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes forward-looking statements within the
meaning of Section 27A of the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended
Section 21E of the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and
the safe harbor provisions of the US Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believe", "anticipate", "expect"
"intend", "seek", "will", "plan", "could", "may", "project", "goal"
"target" and similar expressions often identify forward-looking
statements but are not the only way we identify these statements. All
statements other than statements of historical fact included in this
press release regarding our future performance, plans to increase
revenues or margins or preserve or expand market share in existing or
new markets, reduce expenses and any statements regarding other future
events or our future prospects, are forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current knowledge
and our present beliefs and expectations regarding possible future
events. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks
uncertainties and assumptions about Partner, consumer habits and
preferences in cellular telephone usage, trends in the Israeli
telecommunications industry in general and possible regulatory and legal
developments. For a description of some of the risks we face, see "Item
3D. Key Information - Risk Factors", "Item 4. - Information on the
Company", "Item 5. - Operating and Financial Review and Prospects" and
"Item 8A. - Consolidated Financial Statements and Other Financial
Information - Legal and Administrative Proceedings" in the form 20-F
filed with the SEC on May 6th, 2008. In light of
these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events
discussed in this press release might not occur, and actual results may
differ materially from the results anticipated. We undertake no
obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. About Partner Communications Partner Communications Company Ltd. ("Partner") is a leading Israeli
mobile communications operator providing GSM / GPRS / UMTS / HSDPA
services and wire free applications under the orange? brand. The Company provides quality service and a range of features to
2.823 million subscribers in Israel (as of March 31st
2008). Partner´s ADSs are quoted on the NASDAQ
Global Select Market? and its shares are
traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (NASDAQ and TASE: PTNR). Partner is a subsidiary of Hutchison Telecommunications International
Limited ("Hutchison Telecom"), a leading global provider of
telecommunications services. Hutchison Telecom currently offers mobile
and fixed line telecommunications services in Hong Kong, and operates
mobile telecommunications services in Israel, Macau, Thailand, Sri
Lanka, Ghana, Vietnam and Indonesia. It was the first provider of 3G
mobile services in Hong Kong and Israel and operates brands including
"Hutch", "3" and "orange". Hutchison Telecom, a subsidiary of Hutchison
Whampoa Limited, is a listed company with American Depositary Shares
quoted on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "HTX" and shares
listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong under the stock code "2332".
For more information about Hutchison Telecom, see www.htil.com. For more information about Partner, see http://www.orange.co.il/investor_site/
