(Hong Kong, November 4, 2002) Diyixian.com Ltd, Greater China’s largest IP private network service provider, today announced the launch of a Voice private network service for businesses in Hong Kong and Taiwan, which were recently affected by the proposed increase in IDD connection fees. Diyixian’s Voice private network is a seamless, consistent, feature-rich service that can link regional sites for voice communications.

Following China Telecom’s decision to sharply increase IDD connection fees for HK carriers to US$0.17 (HK$1.33) per minute, or 8.5 times the current rate of US$0.02 (HK$0.16), there have been a series of moves by local carriers to raise customer tariffs for IDD calls to mainland China, including those from fixed lines and mobile phones, by up to 20 per cent more than the national carrier’s proposed fee increase. Since the tariff hike would increase the cost of doing business in the present difficult economic situation, it is high time that businesses consider more cost-effective and viable options of data and voice communications.

Diyixian has recently accelerated its telecoms infrastructure expansion program in the Greater China area to keep pace with pent-up demand for its Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) IP private network services. IP private network is a partitioned private network constructed over a shared IP-based backbone that ensures privacy of data. Compared with private leased-line connections, such as the commonly used and expensive IPLC links, Internet-based communications are immune to tariff hike and cost much less for enterprises to use. Companies that deploy or subscribe to IP private networks do not need to build private lines between their sites, and for companies with multiple sites this represents huge savings in capital and time.

Research firm International Data Corp (IDC) recently said IP private network had become a mainstream technology that so far remained immune to lingering global sluggishness in demand for IT products. It also predicted the revenue growth in the Asia Pacific IP private network market to almost US$3 billion (HK$23 billion) by 2006, and considered the Greater China market as the region’s prime growth areas.

To address the region’s growing demand for pure voice transmission over IP private networks, Diyixian rolls out a new cost-effective Voice private network service that enables customers to reduce their billing for long distance voice traffic compared to switched toll calls. Customers who have a large volume of toll voice traffic between company sites will experience the most savings using the voice class of service.

This new package features secure private network connectivity between HK/Taiwan and Mainland China over broadband or leased lines, FREE Micronet Series IP phones at both the transmitting and receiving ends plus any additional site, FREE one month service as well as a competitive subscription fee of HK$1,288 and up per month for unlimited access. All offers are valid until December 31, 2002.

“Our Voice private network service is the perfect IP telephony solution for any business that makes frequent IDD calls from HK and Taiwan to branches or remote offices in mainland China,” said Lap Man, CEO of Diyixian. “In the never-ending quest to lower costs and improve productivity, Voice private network is emerging as the next technology that promises to help businesses improve their competitive positions.”