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Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), one of Asia’s leading communication providers, today announced the establishment of a strategic partnership with Vodafone with TM becoming a Vodafone Partner Network, thereby forging a global reach with an estimated 179 million subscribers worldwide.

To facilitate the partnership, TM signed a Partner Network Agreement with Vodafone, while its subsidiaries – Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad (Celcom), PT Excelcomindo Pratama Tbk (XL) and Dialog Telekom Limited (Dialog), – signed separate Cooperation and Branding Agreements with Vodafone.

The signing of the various agreements constitutes Phase 1 of the partnership, whilst under Phase 2, the partnership will be extended to TM’s Bangladeshi and Cambodian subsidiaries, TM International (Bangladesh) Limited (TMIB) and Cambodia Samart Communication Co. Ltd (Casacom).

The signing ceremony for the various agreements took place today between TM, Celcom, XL, Dialog Telekom and Vodafone in Kuala Lumpur. Group CEO Dato’ Abdul Wahid Omar signed for TM, whilst CEO Dato’ Mohammed Shazalli Ramly signed for Celcom, President Director Christian de Faria for XL, and CEO Dr Hans Wijayasuriya for Dialog. Vodafone was represented by its Group Director for Business Development, Devin Brougham.

“We are proud to be partnering with Vodafone. It is not only good news for both companies but the customers stand to benefit the most from this strategic partnership as they will now be able to enjoy a full range of products and services that are drawn from this partnership between TM and Vodafone," said Tan Sri Dato' Ir. Md. Radzi Mansor, Chairman of TM, at the signing.

Under the terms of the agreement, TM and its subsidiaries will co-operate in developing and offering products and services to international travellers and domestic customers. In the individual markets – Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Indonesia – Vodafone’s products and services will be marketed under a dual brand. This will bring the national brands of Celcom, XL and Dialog together with the globally recognised Vodafone brand.

Among the products and services that the three TM subsidiaries will be able to provide access to include a wide range of Vodafone’s international voice and data roaming services such as GPRS Roaming and 3G Roaming. The three subsidiaries will also introduce a number of Vodafone’s business solutions, which will enable business professionals to enjoy a superior and more transparent communication experience.

Speaking at the event, Dato’ Abdul Wahid Omar explained, "For us at TM, a strategic partnership with one of the world’s most recognizable brands certainly gives an edge to TM vis-a-vis its competitors. We are excited about the possibilities this affiliation brings. As a precursor, our customers in Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka will have access to a wider spectrum of products and services especially when they travel abroad. In doing so, we are bringing our local mobile market to another level in terms of breadth and depth of product offering and thus raising the bar in meeting customers’ needs.”

“The partnership’s dual-brand character will give TM a boost in terms of global visibility and brand equity. With this partnership, more than 20 million mobile subscribers in the TM family will augment a 179 million-strong Vodafone family, thereby increasing roaming revenues by reaching out to more international travellers, “ Dato’ Wahid added.

Vodafone Chief Executive, Arun Sarin said that the strategic relationship with TM significantly enhances Vodafone’s Partner Network presence in Asia, building on Vodafone’s existing relationships with M1 in Singapore and SmarTone in Hong Kong.

“This is helping to improve our roaming footprint in the Asia Pacific region, providing our customers with a greatly enhanced service. We intend that our relationship with TM will lead to further benefits for our customers in the future,” he said.

“The Government is pleased that as one of our premier GLCs, TM has ventured beyond the borders of Malaysia in a focused and concerted manner. I have the confidence that TM’s experience gleaned from its overseas ventures will make it a valuable business partner in this strategic partnership," said Dato' Seri Dr. Lim Keng Yaik, Minister of Energy, Water and Communications upon witnessing the signing ceremony.

The three signatories from Celcom, XL and Dialog collectively agree that this partnership is important for them – elevating the companies to become truly global telecommunication players. The partnership with Vodafone will not only have a positive effect on the perception, standards and deliverables of the companies, but it will also offer customers of Celcom, XL and Dialog more benefits.

About TM

TM, a leading regional information and communications group, offers a comprehensive range of communication services and solutions in fixed-line, mobile, data and broadband. As one of the largest listed companies on Bursa Malaysia with an operating revenue of more than RM13 billion, TM is driven to deliver value to its stakeholders in a highly competitive environment.

The Group places emphasis on continuing customer service quality enhancements and innovations. Currently, with investments and operations in 12 countries around Asia and globally, TM is focused on achieving sustainable growth in both the local and international markets.

For further information on TM, visit www.tm.com.my

About TM International Sdn Bhd

Through its investment-holding arm, TM International, TM is one of the leading regional telecommunications companies with interests in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Cambodia. It also has selected investments in Africa namely in Guinea and Malawi.

TM International has a track record of adding value to its investments, and an approach which focuses on developing the skills and capabilities of its local management teams and working in partnership with these local teams to achieve strong market positions and profitability.

TM’s overseas investments have always contributed significantly to the Group’s overall PATAMI. For the nine months ended September 2005, TM’s overseas investment contributed 10.8 per cent or RM1.1 billion to the Group revenue. PATAMI contribution was 21.2 per cent or RM261.5 million to Group’s PATAMI.

For further information on TM International, visit www.tm.com.my

About Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad

Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad is Malaysia’s most experienced and premier mobile telecommunications company with more than 6.8 million customers. It currently has the widest network coverage covering 96% of the populated areas in the country. Celcom was the first to launch the 3G service in Malaysia and has the widest 3G coverage in the country.

Celcom also offers international roaming service in more than 90 countries over almost 200 networks worldwide. It currently offers mobile telephony services in Malaysia for postpaid and prepaid products under the 019 and 013 access codes. For more information on Celcom, log on to http://www.celcom.com.my

About XL

XL, one of the leading telecommunication companies in Indonesia, is a subsidiary of Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM), one of the largest telecommunication companies in Asia. XL was established in November 1995 and started its commercial operations on 8 October 1996. Currently XL provides Consumer Solutions by providing dual band cellular networks through pre-paid cards jempol & bebas and post-paid card Xplor, and Business Solutions as a provider of leased line, broadband and IP (Internet Protocol)-based corporate solutions. In 2005, TM became the controlling shareholders with 56.9% shares. As at 31 December 2005, XL’s subscriber base stood at seven million.

For more information on XL, visit www.xl.co.id

About Dialog Telekom Limited

Dialog Telekom Limited is the largest mobile operator in Sri Lanka with 2.12 million subscribers as at 31 December 2005 (representing more than 60% market share). It is also the largest listed company on the Colombo Stock Exchange in terms of market capitalisation. With a market capitalisation (as of 31 December 2005) of approximately 127,709 million SLR (USD1.25 billion), representing 21 per cent of the market capitalisation on the Colombo Stock Exchange, the company has the distinction of having become the first company in Sri Lanka to achieve a market capitalisation exceeding USD1 billion.

Dialog Telekom Limited is a subsidiary of the Telekom Malaysia Group. In addition to its core mobile telephony business, the company provides international services, supporting an International Gateway infrastructure providing retail and wholesale international voice and data services under the brand name of Dialog Global. The company also provides Internet services through Dialog Internet - a fully-fledged Internet Service Provider (ISP). Dialog Telekom also operates Dialog SAT, a mobile satellite service.

For more information on Dialog, visit www.dialog.lk

About Vodafone

Vodafone provides a full range of mobile telecommunications services, including voice and data communications. Vodafone has equity interests in 27 countries and Partner Networks in a further 31 countries, with a proportionate customer base of over 179 million.

For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com