Optus announced today it was the first Australian telecommunications carrier to be commercially ready to offer the most advanced Voice over IP (VoIP) solution, Optus IP Centrex, to corporate, government and small to medium enterprises.

IP Centrex is an advanced alternative to other VoIP solutions. It permits companies to merge their voice and data communications onto a single network, which is centrally managed from the Optus exchange.

Peter Kaliaropoulos, Managing Director of Optus Business, said Optus made a commitment to the Australian business community to deliver a cost effective voice and data solution and it was now ready and available.

"We expect Optus IP Centrex will significantly enhance business interaction and will considerably cut the costs associated with running two separate networks," Mr Kaliaropoulos said.

"In addition, businesses can expect greater levels of service and mobility, simplified communication networks and an increased competitive advantage through process improvement.

"Customer organisations no longer need to buy and maintain costly PBX equipment - they can focus on their core business and leave it to Optus to manage their desktop telephony."

Mr Kaliaropoulos said Optus IP Centrex offers sophisticated features, which have been successful in other parts of the world but have not yet been available in Australia, such as IP Centrex partition.

"Optus IP Centrex permits customers to select their own features mix giving them greater functionality, including multimedia services such as video conferencing, document sharing and unified communications - all over an integrated network.

"Our packages are targeted at simplifying service configuration and providing customers with a greater value proposition. Cost effectiveness is often touted as being the main barrier for businesses from adopting new information technology - but Optus now provides a solution that breaks through that barrier."

Mr Kaliaropoulos said Optus would be taking an aggressive approach with its IP telephony services and would be looking to capture approximately one third of the Australian business and government market.

"We believe our IP Centrex solution is more mature than any of our competitors' solutions and it will capture a large chunk of the market as businesses realise convergence is the way of the future," he said.

Key Features of Optus IP Centrex:

• Optus' IP Centrex offering is enabled by Nortel Networks Succession IP telephony, multimedia and data products including:
  - Succession CS 2000 Softswitch, Passport Media Gateways and Services Edge Router; and
  - Multimedia Communication Server 5200.
• Optus IP Centrex provides advanced call management control capabilities not supplied by any other Centrex service providers in Australia.
• A web-based administration tool allows end users to self-cater for their needs by activating or de-activating a variety of telephony features. They can personally control the routing of incoming calls, which allows them to achieve maximum control and customisation of their communication channels. This tool addresses current Centrex users’ frustration about reliance on the carrier for service changes.
• Optus offers more than a basic IP Centrex system – the latest in multimedia technology is available with IP Centrex as a value-added component.
• Multimedia features include video conferencing, document sharing and unified messages. Users can also have the same number and address for phone, fax, data, desktop, video, email and web; program the web portal to receive calls simultaneously or sequentially ('follow me, find me' service); or click to call from email, contact, calendar or web portal.
• Optus gives high-quality support services to customers and has enhanced its current call centre to provide for IP Centrex users. Optus IP Centrex will cause minimal disruption to business during the transitional phase and customers will not experience negative change during migration.
• Optus IP Centrex runs over Optus' Multiprotocol Layer Switching (MPLS) Optus Private Internet (OPI) network and provides an integrated IP, voice and data, platform.
• Optus IP Centrex provides the capability to terminate calls on a desktop phone, soft phone or mobile. End users will also have the capability to personally control the routing of incoming calls to any of these devices.

For further information please contact:
Luisa Ford
Optus Corporate Affairs
Phone: (02) 9342 5045