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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lucent Technologies and Iwatsu Electric announce strategic
alliance to target converged voice and data communications
market in Japan
TOKYO, JAPAN · September 21, 1999: Lucent Technologies
(NYSE: LU), a world leader in the communications industry,
and Iwatsu
Electric
(TSE:
Iwatsu), a leading supplier of business communications systems
in Japan, today announced that they have formed a strategic
alliance to jointly develop the market for converged voice/data
communications systems - such as digital switching platforms
and integrated voice and data solutions -- for small and
mid-sized business customers in Japan.
The companies plan to work together to customize, market,
distribute and provide after-sales support for business communications
systems for those customers, where demand for such systems
is growing.
Converged communications systems -- those that manage voice
and data transmissions simultaneously -- cost-effectively
support the type of communications for businesses, including
call centres, seamless voice messaging, computer telephony
integration (CTI) and integrated voice and data networking,
including Internet Protocol.
The alliance will enable small and mid-sized business customers
to take advantage of improved product capability, delivery
and support that Lucent and Iwatsu plan to offer.
"It is our great pleasure to have an agreement with
Lucent," said Noboru Teranishi, president of Iwatsu
Electric. "The demand for sophisticated communications
systems is increasing. We want to respond to this market
opportunity presented by developing businesses. Our company
wants to realize this together with Lucent. Lucent is a reliable
company with 127 years of history in communications and most
importantly, it has leading expertise in emerging technologies
such as Internet Protocol."
"Iwatsu and Lucent have a significant market opportunity
here. Valued at around US$4 billion ** (yen 470 billion),
Japan represents the second largest business communications
systems market in the world," said Dave Johnson, president,
Business Communications Systems International, Lucent Technologies. " Lucent
is committed to providing sophisticated voice and data communications
solutions to meet small and medium-sized customer needs.
Joint activities in market development with Iwatsu will allow
us to better reach and serve small and medium businesses
in Japan."
Iwatsu Electric, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, founded
in 1938, is a leading provider of telecommunication systems.
Products include digital Private Branch Exchange (PBX) and
key telephone systems; cordless communication systems; CTI
systems; testing and measuring instruments and reprographic
systems. For more information on Iwatsu Electric, visit its
Web site at http://www.iwatsu.co.jp.
Lucent Technologies, headquartered in Murray Hill, N.J.,
designs, builds and delivers a wide range of public and private
networks, communications systems and software, data networking
systems, business telephone systems and microelectronics
components. Bell Laboratories is the research and development
arm of the company. The company's Web site is http://www.lucent.com.
For information on Lucent Technologies' Business Communications
Systems group in Asia/Pacific see http://www.lucent.com/bcs_apac.
** Source: Yano Research Institute, 1999 Report
For more information, reporters may contact:
Catherine Wu
Lucent Technologies Asia Pacific
852-2506-8036 (office)
Email: catwu@lucent.com
Miki Segawa-Matsubara
Lucent Technologies Japan
813-5561-3167 (office)
Email: mikisegawa@lucent.com
Barbara Burgess
Lucent Technologies -- U.S.
908-559-6310
Email: barbarab@lucent.com
Takateru Ueda
Iwatsu Electric Japan
813-5370-5120 (office)
Email: ueda@iwatsu.co.jp
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