BTopenworld and Amadeus To Form Joint Venture Company To Offer Online Travel Services.

Business Editors

MADRID, Spain and LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 26, 2000

BTopenworld and Amadeus, a leading global distribution system (GDS) and technology provider serving the travel and tourism industries, today announced that they have agreed to create a new joint venture company to launch a range of online travel services within the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

The joint venture will enable users to book flights, hotels and reserve cars over the Internet at attractive prices, using the comprehensive travel database of Amadeus. Subject to receiving the appropriate approvals, the service is expected to go live online later this year.

The new company will develop high-speed, video-rich content services for BTopenworld, British Telecommunications' new mass market Internet business focused increasingly on broadband services. BT already has some 2.6 million dial-up Internet subscribers.

Amadeus, in turn, will provide BTopenworld customers with a range of comprehensive travel services. More than 48,000 travel agencies around the world use the Amadeus system to book flights on over 500 airlines.

The number of bookings made online in the global travel market is expected to triple in value, to an estimated 12.6 billion Pounds Sterling, by 2001. Analysts expect travel transactions this year alone to be worth around 8 billion Pounds Sterling, more than double the 1999 figure.

John Raczka, Head of Content, BTopenworld, said, "It is obvious, from the significant increase in the use of online travel services, that Internet customers find the Web the ideal medium through which to make their holiday and travel arrangements, both for business and leisure activities.

"We view travel as one of the most important areas of commerce-oriented content on the Internet. With this in mind, we are delighted to be launching this joint venture with Amadeus, which we believe will bring to the partnership the best online travel solutions in the UK and the Republic of Ireland."

Philippe Chereque, Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy for Amadeus, said, "In BT we have an excellent partner with whom we can develop the UK and Irish markets for e-travel solutions.

"Our e-commerce strategy is to partner with businesses, such as BT, that have a strong market presence and a recognizable brand. In this way, both partners can develop fully the potential that e-commerce means for the traveler."

The joint venture aims to become the established leader in online travel throughout the UK and the Republic of Ireland. In addition to broadband, it will develop new services for dial-up Internet access, as well as Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and other wireless distribution.

Notes to the Editor:

British Telecommunications plc

British Telecommunications plc is one of the world's leading providers of telecommunications services. With a market capitalization in excess of 70 billion Pounds Sterling, it is one of the largest private sector companies in Europe. Its principal activity is the supply of local, long distance and international telecommunications services and equipment in the UK, serving 27 million exchange lines. International direct-dialed telephone service is available to more than 200 countries and other overseas territories - covering 99 percent of the world's 800 million telephones.

BT is expanding its presence overseas rapidly and has operations in more than 30 countries worldwide, with joint ventures in the Republic of Ireland, France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea and India. Concert, a wholly owned subsidiary of BT, is based in the US and develops advanced networking services for global companies. Today, Concert's intelligent network platform provides an array of global telecommunications services to more than 4,400 companies in over 50 countries.

In July 1998, BT announced the formation of a US$10 billion global venture combining its trans-border assets and operations with those of AT&T and developing an intelligent Internet Protocol (IP)-based network which will support services such as global electronic commerce, global call centres and new Intranet based solutions. The joint venture, which includes Concert, was completed in 1999.

Amadeus Global Travel Distribution

Amadeus, with U.S. headquarters in Miami, Florida, is the world's number one global distribution system (GDS) and technology provider serving the marketing, sales and distribution needs of the world's travel and tourism industries. Worldwide, Amadeus is chosen by more travel agency locations, receives more billable bookings and processes more international travel reservations than any other GDS. Its comprehensive data network and database, amongst the largest of their kind in Europe, serve over 48,400 travel agency locations and some 8,200 airline sales offices worldwide.

Through the Amadeus system, travel agencies and airline offices are able to make bookings on over 500 airlines, representing more than 95 per cent of the world's scheduled airline seats. The system also provides access to over 51,000 hotels, 48 car rental companies, as well as serving newer provider groups, including ferry, rail, cruise, insurance and tour operators.

Amadeus is a significant provider of information technology and an enabler of e-commerce for the travel industry. Amadeus also delivers the powerful booking engine behind the Web pages of more than 3,000 travel agencies, and some 81 Web sites serving 28 airlines. Additionally, it provides similar e-commerce solutions for partners ranging from Wal-Mart (USA) to Gruppo L'Espresso (Italy).

Founded in 1987, and fully operational from 1992, Amadeus is headquartered in Madrid, Spain. Its data centre is in Erding (near Munich), Germany and its development offices are located in Sophia Antipolis (near Nice), France. The company has almost 3,000 employees worldwide, including 750 in the U.S. Additional information available at www.global.amadeus.net.