UTStarcom Expands Fitel DealUTStarcom Expands Fitel Deal

UTStarcom signs contract with Fitel for expansion of its PAS service to Kaoshong in Southern Taiwan

December 16, 2003

2 Min Read

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- UTStarcom Inc., (Nasdaq: UTSI), the industry leader in the worldwide PAS (Personal Access System) market, today announced that it has signed a $10 million expansion agreement to its existing contract with First International Telecommunications Corporation of Taiwan (FITEL) to offer PAS services in the southern city of Kaoshong. This brings the total value of contracts signed with FITEL to approximately $70 million to date.

"Despite the ubiquity of GSM and recent introduction of 3G services in Taiwan, PAS service continues to grow and add more subscribers each month," said Joe Ye, general manager of UTStarcom Taiwan. "This expansion agreement represents a new landmark in PAS expansion in Taiwan, as previous contracts focused solely on deployments in the greater Taipei metropolitan area. We expect to expand PAS services in cities throughout Taiwan and further our successful partnership with FITEL."

Based on the success and profitability of UTStarcom's PAS services in Taipei, FITEL will now commence service in Kaoshong, a city in southern Taiwan that covers 153,000 square kilometers and has a population of approximately 1.5 million people. Subscribers in Kaoshong will be able to take advantage of PAS' high-quality voice services, as well as advanced data applications including 64- kbps wireless Internet access, e-mail, and English/Chinese short messaging services. UTStarcom PAS subscribers in Taiwan also enjoy roaming capabilities while traveling in Japan, a first for PAS services in the country.

"Although it was introduced into a market saturated with other wireless service offerings, PAS has flourished in Taiwan because of the benefits it provides to both operators and end users," said C.Y. Wu, president of FITEL. "Service providers can deploy PAS with the knowledge that the return on investment is fast, the time to profitability is short, and the deployment and management of the technology is easy. Subscribers benefit from PAS' advanced data services and high-quality voice services, at a reduced cost compared with market alternatives."

UTStarcom Inc.

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