Cable and Wireless plc, the global telecommunications group, today (18 April 2000) announced a further major development of its global IP network with the acquisition of a majority holding in IPERGY, a Brussels based company providing a pan European fibre optic Internet backbone supporting a range of IP and co-location services. This acquisition will bring forward Cable & Wireless' roll out of IP services in Europe by nine months.

This move strengthens Cable & Wireless' position as a market leader in business IP. The recent acquisition of eleven ISPs, and a web design house in Europe brings the total investment by Cable & Wireless to over $500 million and further reinforces its strategy of offering advanced Data and IP solutions to business customers. An additional $1.5 billion is being invested in building a European network which will be fully integrated into Cable & Wireless' unique global IP network.

The majority holding in IPERGY ensures that Cable & Wireless remains at the forefront of developments in the IP field and is able to deliver an immediate pan European Internet backbone which will complement the existing investments currently being made in building the 9.6 Gigabits (OC192) IP network in Europe. Both these investments will be incorporated into the global IP backbone AS3561 that is being built at present. IPERGY's network includes interconnection with major Internet nodes in Europe -London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris, Zurich, Milan and Madrid.

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