Pipex Acquires Freedom to Surf

LONDON -- PIPEX Communications plc has announced the acquisition of Freedom to Surf plc, the Internet Service Provider, and Freedom to Surf Consumer Services Ltd (collectively “F2S”), further strengthening its broadband offering to new and existing customers.

F2S is a significant UK ADSL provider, with just over 40,000 broadband customers at the end of September 2005, which, together with PIPEX’s existing customer base, consolidates the Company’s position as the 5th largest broadband DSL provider in the UK.

Incorporating the F2S business within the PIPEX group will provide further opportunities for driving the expansion of broadband delivery, particularly in the area of Local Loop Unbundled (LLU) customers and the roll-out of ADSL2+. In addition, the acquisition will enable F2S’s customers to benefit from the enlarged network capabilities of the Group as well as the broader product offering.

Mike Read, CEO of PIPEX says, “In the light of our recent decision to unbundle an initial 60 exchanges, we are very pleased to add F2S to the PIPEX group, which will further increase the density of customers around each exchange, thus improving the return on capital and enabling us to offer higher speeds to a greater number of our customers. F2S’s customers will be able to benefit from our more extensive network and the broad range of services we provide.”

Pipex Communications plc