BT Selects Nortel to Help Transform Communications for UK Enterprises

London (ots/PRNewswire) -

- Multimedia, Internet Telephony, Instant Messaging and Mobility
Required to Take UK Business Into 21st Century

BT and Nortel(x) (NYSE/TSX: NT) have signed a new, three-year
partnership agreement to drive the uptake of VoIP, multimedia,
instant messaging and mobile communications by UK enterprises of all
sizes.

The new agreement aims to enhance the ability of BT's existing and
new customers to exploit the opportunities for more easy to use,
cost-effective communications made possible by the convergence of
multiple voice and data networks into a single, efficient IP-based
network. Nortel and BT are developing new solutions based on Nortel's
portfolio and BT's networked IT services designed to evolve
enterprise communications towards improved fixed-mobile convergence.

"BT's customers are turning to convergence to improve the
efficiency and flexibility of their businesses. To support them we
must ensure that we have the right partners in place with
leading-edge portfolios, the highest levels of commitment and a
shared vision," said Andy Green, chief executive officer, BT Global
Services. "Through this new agreement with Nortel we will be working
closer together than ever to offer our customers fresh solutions and
perspectives on how their business can thrive in the digital
networked economy."

"People are increasingly using Internet-based video, instant
messaging and voice communications at home and on the move," said
Mike Zafirovski, president and CEO, Nortel. "It's vital that industry
leaders like BT and Nortel demonstrate the benefits that similar
capabilities can bring within enterprises and organisations."

The signing of the new agreement between BT and Nortel is part of
an extensive review by BT of its vendor partnership strategy. It
supplements the companies' existing supplier relationship for voice
and data equipment.

BT and Nortel have worked in partnership since 1990, delivering
market-leading converged communications solutions to businesses in
all sectors and of all sizes across the UK and beyond. BT is Nortel's
largest EMEA enterprise partner and one of its three main global
partners. BT is fully accredited as a Nortel Gold partner and has
over 1,000 Nortel-trained technicians.

BT is the UK market leader for the supply of enterprise telephone
systems (PBX/IP PBX), with a 27 per cent share of total extensions
for Q1 2006, according to researcher MZA. Nortel is the leading
supplier of PBX/IP PBX equipment in the UK market with a 20 per cent
share in Q1 2006, according to the same research.

The new relationship adds further momentum to BT's drive to move
this extensive installed base of Nortel telephony customers onto
converged networks and applications and to win a greater share of the
IP communications equipment and services market.

About Nortel

Nortel is a recognised leader in delivering communications
capabilities that enhance the human experience, ignite and power
global commerce, and secure and protect the world's most critical
information. Our next-generation technologies, for both service
providers and enterprises, span access and core networks, support
multimedia and business-critical applications, and help eliminate
today's barriers to efficiency, speed and performance by simplifying
networks and connecting people with information. Nortel does business
in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit Nortel on the
Web at www.nortel.com. For the latest Nortel news, visit
www.nortel.com/news.

Certain statements in this press release may contain words such as
"could", "expects", "may", "anticipates", "believes", "intends",
"estimates", "targets", "envisions", "seeks" and other similar
language and are considered forward-looking statements or information
under applicable securities legislation. These statements are based
on Nortel's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and
projections about the operating environment, economies and markets in
which Nortel operates. These statements are subject to important
assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict
and the actual outcome may be materially different. Further, actual
results or events could differ materially from those contemplated in
forward-looking statements as a result of the following (i) risks and
uncertainties relating to Nortel's restatements and related matters
including: Nortel's most recent restatement and two previous
restatements of its financial statements and related events; the
negative impact on Nortel and NNL of their most recent restatement
and delay in filing their financial statements and related periodic
reports; legal judgments, fines, penalties or settlements, or any
substantial regulatory fines or other penalties or sanctions, related
to the ongoing regulatory and criminal investigations of Nortel in
the US and Canada; any significant pending civil litigation actions
not encompassed by Nortel's proposed class action settlement; any
substantial cash payment and/or significant dilution of Nortel's
existing equity positions resulting from the approval of its proposed
class action settlement; any unsuccessful remediation of Nortel's
material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting
resulting in an inability to report Nortel's results of operations
and financial condition accurately and in a timely manner; the time
required to implement Nortel's remedial measures; Nortel's inability
to access, in its current form, its shelf registration filed with the
United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Nortel's
below investment grade credit rating and any further adverse effect
on its credit rating due to Nortel's restatements of its financial
statements; any adverse affect on Nortel's business and market price
of its publicly traded securities arising from continuing negative
publicity related to Nortel's restatements; Nortel's potential
inability to attract or retain the personnel necessary to achieve its
business objectives; any breach by Nortel of the continued listing
requirements of the NYSE or TSX causing the NYSE and/or the TSX to
commence suspension or delisting procedures; (ii) risks and
uncertainties relating to Nortel's business including: yearly and
quarterly fluctuations of Nortel's operating results; reduced demand
and pricing pressures for its products due to global economic
conditions, significant competition, competitive pricing practice,
cautious capital spending by customers, increased industry
consolidation, rapidly changing technologies, evolving industry
standards, frequent new product introductions and short product life
cycles, and other trends and industry characteristics affecting the
telecommunications industry; the sufficiency of recently announced
restructuring actions, including the potential for higher actual
costs to be incurred in connection with these restructuring actions
compared to the estimated costs of such actions and the ability to
achieve the targeted cost savings and reductions of Nortel's unfunded
pension liability deficit; any material and adverse affects on
Nortel's performance if its expectations regarding market demand for
particular products prove to be wrong or because of certain barriers
in its efforts to expand internationally; any reduction in Nortel's
operating results and any related volatility in the market price of
its publicly traded securities arising from any decline in its gross
margin, or fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; any
negative developments associated with Nortel's supply contract and
contract manufacturing agreements including as a result of using a
sole supplier for key optical networking solutions components, and
any defects or errors in Nortel's current or planned products; any
negative impact to Nortel of its failure to achieve its business
transformation objectives, including completion of the sale of its
UMTS access business to Alcatel-Lucent; additional valuation
allowances for all or a portion of its deferred tax assets; Nortel's
failure to protect its intellectual property rights, or any adverse
judgments or settlements arising out of disputes regarding
intellectual property; changes in regulation of the Internet and/or
other aspects of the industry; Nortel's failure to successfully
operate or integrate its strategic acquisitions, or failure to
consummate or succeed with its strategic alliances; any negative
effect of Nortel's failure to evolve adequately its financial and
managerial control and reporting systems and processes, manage and
grow its business, or create an effective risk management strategy;
and (iii) risks and uncertainties relating to Nortel's liquidity,
financing arrangements and capital including: the impact of Nortel's
most recent restatement and two previous restatements of its
financial statements; any inability of Nortel to manage cash flow
fluctuations to fund working capital requirements or achieve its
business objectives in a timely manner or obtain additional sources
of funding; high levels of debt, limitations on Nortel capitalising
on business opportunities because of support facility covenants, or
on obtaining additional secured debt pursuant to the provisions of
indentures governing certain of Nortel's public debt issues and the
provisions of its support facility; any increase of restricted cash
requirements for Nortel if it is unable to secure alternative support
for obligations arising from certain normal course business
activities, or any inability of Nortel's subsidiaries to provide it
with sufficient funding; any negative effect to Nortel of the need to
make larger defined benefit plans contributions in the future or
exposure to customer credit risks or inability of customers to fulfil
payment obligations under customer financing arrangements; any
negative impact on Nortel's ability to make future acquisitions,
raise capital, issue debt and retain employees arising from stock
price volatility and further declines in the market price of Nortel's
publicly traded securities, or the share consolidation resulting in a
lower total market capitalisation or adverse effect on the liquidity
of Nortel's common shares. For additional information with respect to
certain of these and other factors, see Nortel's Annual Report on
Form 10-K/A, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other securities
filings with the SEC. Unless otherwise required by applicable
securities laws, Nortel disclaims any intention or obligation to
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise.

(x) Nortel, the Nortel logo and the Globemark are trademarks of
Nortel Networks. Use of the terms "partner" and "partnership" does
not imply a legal partnership between Nortel and any other party.

ots Originaltext: Nortel Networks
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
For further information: Ben Roome, +44-1628-433113,
benroome@nortel.com


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