com hem will be an important part of Telia's continuing broadband initiative

com hem will be an important part of Telia's continuing broadband initiative Telia's Board of Directors has decided that com hem, a wholly owned Telia subsidiary, will be an important part of Telia's continuing broadband initiative and has therefore reversed and shelved its earlier plan to divest the company. com hem will be a company in the Telia Internet Services business area and keep its established brand. com hem will continue to focus on motion pictures and entertainment provided through digital television and broadband access. The company has a well established consumer-oriented brand. In co-operation with other companies in the Telia Internet Services business area, com hem will now be able to operate in a larger arena. "By keeping com hem, Telia will secure its leading position in the development of new broadband media in Sweden," says Indra Åsander, head of the Telia Internet Services business area. "com hem's know-how and leading position as a developer of digital television services will give our combined business greater impact. com hem's access to television media, as a distribution channel for broadband content, will also sharpen our competitive edge." In 2001, Telia's deliveries of broadband services via ADSL connections and LAN got earnestly under way, with the number of paying customers growing from 42,000 to 68,000. In Denmark, where Telia offers broadband access via the cable television network, the number of broadband installations rose from 175,000 to 211,000, while the number of paying customers for broadband Internet services increased from 30,000 to 38,000. In Sweden, com hem's broadband deliveries grew from 193,000 to 252,000 and the number of paying customers for broadband Internet services increased from 22,000 to 31,000. com hem has 1,361,000 households connected to the cable television network, of which 105,000 have digital television. The Telia Internet Services business area was formed on April 1 and currently includes the following wholly owned subsidiaries: Telia e- bolaget AB, Telia Internet Partner AB, Telia Electronic Commerce AB, Telia STOFA A/S, Jydsk Central Antenne and eTelia A/S. Indra Åsander is Business Area Manager . The Telia Internet Services business area had 942 employees at the end of the first quarter this year. With the addition of com hem, the number of employees increased by 236 to 1,178. For further information journalists may contact: Indra Åsander, Manager, Telia Internet Services business area, phone +46 70-539 9660 Per Nilsson, President of com hem AB, phone +46 70-309 30 20, or Telia's Press Office, phone +46 8 713 58 30 ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by BIT http://www.bit.se The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2001/05/10/20010510BIT00590/bit0002.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/2001/05/10/20010510BIT00590/bit0002.pdf