TA Orange Awards Alcatel a USD 133 Million Contract to Expand and Upgrade Its Mobile Network in Thailand

TA Orange Awards Alcatel a USD 133 Million Contract to Expand and Upgrade Its Mobile Network in Thailand

DALLAS, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alcatel (NYSE: ALA; Paris: CGEP.PA) today announced that it has signed a USD 133 million contract with TA Orange, a leading mobile operator in Thailand, to expand the operator's current Alcatel-powered GSM/GPRS mobile network and to upgrade it with EDGE and 3G/UMTS. This upgrade provides TA Orange with a clear migration path to 3G. In preparation for this development the operator has already granted Alcatel an exclusive agreement to deploy 3G/UMTS during the 2005 and 2006 timeframe.

In the framework of this contract, Alcatel will also deploy a mobile Next Generation Network (mobile NGN) solution that will cater to the needs of 3.6 million additional users. This will substantially increase TA Orange's capacity to provide new multimedia services to its subscribers with optimized costs in parallel to the extension of the operator's mobile coverage.

Alcatel's Mobile NGN solution is based on an innovative, standards-based mobile switching solution, designed by Spatial Wireless, a company recently acquired by Alcatel. The cornerstone of Alcatel's Mobile NGN solution delivered to TA Orange is Alcatel 5020 Spatial Atrium Softswitch, a multi- standard and field-proven mobile softswitch that controls distributed media gateways and manages call/session control for voice and data services.

This solution will allow TA Orange to reduce the operating costs of its mobile GSM/GPRS core network and will help the operator optimize its costs for 3G/UMTS introduction, thus ensuring long-term investment protection in preparation for the introduction of IP Multimedia Subsystems (IMS).

In addition, Alcatel will provide TA Orange with its intelligent GPRS Gateway Support Node (iGGSN) solution, a very strategic core network element for the deployment of mobile data services as it allows operators to charge their subscribers according to the type of content they access and to the service value they perceive.

"Given the increasing demand for emerging mobile services solutions, we want to make sure we have the best solution in place to meet the needs of our customers today and tomorrow," said Mr. Supachai Chearavanont, CEO of TA Orange. "We asked Alcatel to support us in this effort because we believe Alcatel has a clear vision of the future for mobile communications and is in the position to get us there," he added.

"Alcatel's value proposition is about realizing a user-centric broadband world -- one where users can enjoy services and interact seamlessly from any location and over different terminals," Marc Rouanne, chief operating officer of Alcatel's mobile communications activities, stated. "Through the delivery of a network upgrade solution including mobile NGN, Alcatel is committed to enable TA Orange to offer successful services to its customers."

Alcatel's end-to-end Evolium(TM) solution is a natively multi-standard platform designed for GSM/GPRS/EDGE and 3G/UMTS networks. It constantly evolves with the latest technological advances, allowing costs to be optimized.

About TA Orange

TA Orange provides almost 3.1 million customers throughout Thailand with innovative, high-quality wirefree(TM) communications services on its nationwide 1800 MHz network under the Orange brand name. TA Orange's vision is to create a pioneering, wirefree(TM) future where people can communicate wherever, whenever and however they wish. The company delivers superior coverage, quality, value and service represented by the Orange brand and its values: straightforward, honest, dynamic, refreshing and friendly. Leveraging its relationships with True Corporation and CP Group, TA Orange offers unique, integrated products and services to the Thai market.

About the Alcatel 5020 Spatial Atrium Softswitch

Alcatel 5020 Spatial Atrium Softswitch is a multi-standard and field- proven mobile softswitch that controls distributed media gateways and manages call/session control for voice and data services. The solution is currently deployed in multi-vendor commercial networks and operates seamlessly in GSM/EDGE, 3G/UMTS, CDMA/MMD and WiFi/UMA networks supporting multiple transport technologies, including TDM, ATM and IP. It also enables smooth evolution to 3GPP/3GPP2 Release 5 and Release 6 networks via software-only upgrades, thus ensuring long-term investment protection in preparation for the introduction and deployment of IP Multimedia Subsystems (IMS).

Available now, Alcatel's distributed architecture solution provides mobile operators with major cost savings, while offering them high scalability and capacity. It allows for NGN interoperability with legacy core networks and, on the top of that, it offers an extensive set of features that can easily be personalized and extended according to specific operator's requirements (including time zone management and handling of several numbering plans in the same call server).

About Alcatel

Alcatel provides communications solutions to telecommunication carriers, Internet service providers and enterprises for delivery of voice, data and video applications to their customers or employees. Alcatel brings its leading position in fixed and mobile broadband networks, applications and services, to help its partners and customers build a user-centric broadband world. With sales of EURO 12.5 billion in 2003, Alcatel operates in more than 130 countries.

For more information, visit Alcatel on the Internet: http://www.alcatel.com/ .

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PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Alcatel

CONTACT: press, Amy MacLeod, +1-613-784-1980, or
Amy.macleod@alcatel.com , or investor relations, Charlotte Laurent-Ottomane,
+1-703-668-3571, or Charlotte.laurent-ottomane@alcatel.com , or industry
analysts, Julie Buckley, +1-707-792-7820, or Julie.buckley@alcatel.com , all
of Alcatel

Web site: http://www.alcatel.com/


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