Winnipeg libraries to battle for batteries in Waste Reduction Week

News release written for Call2Recycle, October 2013.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 15, 2013

Winnipeg libraries to battle for batteries in Waste Reduction Week

Call2Recycle^® offers community prize and “Waste Ace” title for diverting the most batteries from landfill

(Winnipeg, MB) — Call2Recycle and Winnipeg Public Library are running a competition during national Waste Reduction Week, October 21-27, to see which branch can collect the most household batteries for recycling.  The community library that collects the most weight in batteries will be awarded a prize by Call2Recycle. Used batteries (weighing up to 5 kg each) and cellphones (with or without batteries), regardless of make, model, or age are accepted. 

According to Orysia Boytchuk, marketing director, Call2Recycle, “It is critical to the success of any recycling program that there are sufficient drop-off locations in the community, and that those locations are well-known.  This is why we are happy to collaborate with Winnipeg Public Library to make sure people understand just how easy battery recycling can be”. 

The genesis of Waste Reduction Week was in the mid-1980s when like-minded local government and environmental organisations in Canada first began collaborating to improve environmental awareness.  From 2001, the week became a branded, national initiative and is now an annual event.  Its organizers and participants include schools, businesses, non-profits, individuals and government departments from each of the 13 participating provincial and territorial jurisdictions across Canada.

The winning library and holder of the “Winnipeg Waste Ace” title will be announced on or close to November 18^th.

Winnipeg Public Library accepts batteries and cellphones for recycling all year round.  To learn more about the competition, or to find the nearest drop-off locations, visit call2recycle.ca/winnipegwasteace/

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For further information contact:

Glyn Davies, marketing coordinator

Call2Recycle^®

1 416 224 0069 ext 234

gdavies@call2recycle.ca

About Call2Recycle

Founded in 1994, Call2Recycle—North America’s first and largest battery stewardship program—is a non-profit organization that collects and recycles batteries at no cost for municipalities, businesses and consumers. Since 1996, Call2Recycle has diverted over 34 million kilograms of batteries and cellphones from the solid waste stream and established 30,000 collection sites throughout Canada and the U.S. It is the first program of its kind to receive the Responsible Recycling Practices Standard (R2) certification. Learn more at call2recycle.ca or call 1.888.224.9764. Become a follower or fan at Twitter or Facebook.

EUROPEAN BUSINESS SPENDING €55 BILLION ON OUTSOURCED DOCUMENT SERVICES

Use of multiple third-party suppliers amplifying organisational document cost, as report identifies multi-billion market opportunity for Xerox Global Services

Uxbridge, UK, 20 December 2004 – Major European organisations are spending circa three per cent of their annual revenue on the outsourcing of creative development, production, distribution and storage of documents, according to an RS Consulting research report commissioned by Xerox Global Services. However, while organisations are spending such a considerable sum on outsourcing these business functions, the spending is at a tactical rather than strategic level. The research results suggest that European businesses would reap much greater efficiency and cost savings if they were to outsource more of their document activity, but to a lesser quantity of external suppliers.

The report is based on more than 600 one-to-one interviews conducted with senior management in more than 250 leading businesses in Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. The report found that an example company with annual sales revenues of €145m is likely to spend €4.35m on outsourced document services, but 90 per cent of businesses are sub-contracting only splintered parts of their document activity to third party suppliers.

“The research highlights two critical issues,” explains Shaun Pantling, director and general manager, Xerox Global Services, Xerox Europe. “Firstly, less than one in five organisations within that 90 per cent outsource to one or a few, select suppliers. This means that the organisation as a whole is failing to reap economies of scale across the business. Secondly, because outsourcing decisions are being taken at a tactical i.e. departmental level, senior management within that organisation may be unaware of the true cost to the entire organisation of document management and outsourcing.”

Pantling continues: “Both we and RS Consulting suspect that few European businesses are currently aware of this issue. RS made the results of this first round of research available to us in the first quarter of 2004, and we believe it is still the only in-depth research into this issue in Europe. We are monitoring it at regular intervals because we believe that, at the moment, it is still going unchecked.”

However, RS Consulting also found that there are additional savings to be made by European businesses by actually outsourcing more of their document-intensive processes.

Bryan Atkin, managing director, RS Consulting comments: “Put simply, organisations are spending money on document outsourcing, but not necessarily in the right way. In most companies there is little evidence of strategic management of spending on document related services. Tactical decision making and budget responsibility operating at functional department level has led to services being provided under multiple contracts by many vendors with no overall view, let alone control, of total outsourcing spend. There is an opportunity here for senior company management to audit where and with whom the company is spending money on outsourcing, in order to develop a solution that is best for all. Until companies start to do this in all European countries, then one must conclude that the European market for outsourced document services is still in its infancy.”

Detailed report findings are in use by Xerox Global Services now to help Xerox refine its offerings to European organisations who seek to reduce costs, increase the value provided by every document in the organisation, and reduce the time-to-market of new products and services by ensuring that accompanying product information is delivered as rapidly as possible to new markets.

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About Xerox
Xerox markets a comprehensive range of digital document solutions and services, as well as associated supplies and software. Its offerings are focused on three main areas: offices from small to large, production print and graphic arts environments, and services that include consulting, systems design and management, and document outsourcing.

Xerox also has manufacturing and logistics operations in Ireland, the UK and Holland and a research and development facility (Xerox Research Centre Europe) in Grenoble, France. For more information, visit www.xerox.com or www.xerox.co.uk.

About Xerox Global Services
Xerox Global Services, one of the three main business units of Xerox, offers a broad portfolio of services including consulting and systems integration, imaging, content management and outsourcing. We work with our clients to improve and manage their document intensive business processes - everyday processes like customer communications, billing, training, or records management. Please refer to www.xerox.co.uk/globalservices (insert local country website address) for further information.

Xerox®, The Document Company® and the digital X® are trademarks of Xerox Corporation. All non-Xerox brands and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

About RS Consulting
Established in 1984, RS Consulting is a highly respected independent research consultancy employing around 40 staff in the UK, and with an annual turnover in excess of £6 million. RS Consulting specialises in market research for leading players in the following sectors: technology; corporate finance; public policy; and industry & supply chain. More than 90 per cent of RS’ consulting and research work is international, with the company providing customers with information on: market sizing and forecasting; segmentation; pricing; new product development and concept testing; channel strategy; customer satisfaction and loyalty; buyer behaviour and the decision process. RS’ global headquarters are in central London. Please refer to www.rsconsulting.com for further information.

XEROX SCIENTISTS DEVELOP FIRST GENERIC IMAGE CATEGORISATION TECHNOLOGY

Innovative technology to revolutionise management of images

Under Embargo until 15th November 2004

Grenoble, France - November 15, 2004. Scientists at Xerox Research Centre Europe (XRCE) have developed a system for the categorisation of generic digital images. The program, which effectively ‘recognises’ a photograph of a car, for example, and categorises it, will bring benefits to business applications such as document and content management systems, by allowing users to filter and search for images as well as words. In particular, this technology will bring advantages to customers who need to efficiently store and manage images and it will significantly extend web searching capabilities which are currently based upon text only.

Although there has been a phenomenal growth in the use of digital cameras and images, the use of technology to categorise image content is in its infancy, and is currently only used in applications such as face recognition in the security industry. However, in a breakthrough at XRCE, scientists have developed a generic technique for the identification of images, allowing the categorisation of multiple everyday image content types, such as buildings, animals, airplanes, books and faces. It is the first generic image categorization technology that is simultaneously robust, fast and simple to use.

“Images play a key role in most documents, but in the past document repositories have only been able to search for and categorise text,” says Christopher Dance, senior scientist, image processing, at Xerox Research Centre Europe. “We will be working with Xerox business groups to integrate this new system into Xerox’s document management offerings, making them pioneering products in this field, and providing Xerox customers with additional competitive advantage.”

This breakthrough is a result of fundamental research at XRCE, using Xerox scientists’ expertise in image processing, computer vision and machine learning. The technology works by ‘training’ a computer to map the key features of an object, known as patches, and to classify sets of these patches. This classification in effect assigns an image to a particular category or categories.

However, certain problems had to be overcome. For example, early versions of the system could confuse an image of a stack of tyres and an image of a car, as they both contain some of the same patches. In order to overcome this, the program examines key patches in the context of other areas of the picture. In this example therefore, a stack of tyres would not get confused with a car, because the machine would recognise that it missed other key patches, such as headlights or windows.

By being able to effectively recognise image content, a number of other services can subsequently be applied. For example, if the image recognized is that of a famous building, then the user could ask for more information about it to be automatically retrieved from the web.

Alongside developing this software for different applications, Xerox will continue to extend its categorizer to handle more visual categories and to incorporate difficult cases where the object of interest occupies only a small fraction of the field of view.

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About Xerox Research Centre Europe
Xerox Research Centre Europe (XRCE) guides Xerox research activities in Europe. The centre coordinates research, engineering and the TeXnology Showroom, a customer showcase for Xerox research and a technology exchange forum. The centre is also in charge of developing connections within the wider European scientific community through collaborative projects and partnerships. XRCE creates innovative document technologies for the Xerox office and global solutions and services businesses.

The group focuses on services that help people access and share documents and knowledge, regardless of device, format, platform or language, from the desktop or at a distance. R&D competencies lie in content analysis (natural language), machine learning, document structures, image processing and work practices. XRCE research programs combine results from several research threads to transfer technology applications to the Xerox business groups. Current programs include Office Applications, Work Practice Services and Document Content & Structure.

About Xerox Europe
Xerox Europe, the European operations of Xerox Corporation, markets a comprehensive range of Xerox products, solutions and services, as well as associated supplies and software. Its offerings are focused on three main areas: offices from small to large, production print and graphic arts environments, and services that include consulting, systems design and management, and document outsourcing.

Xerox Europe also has manufacturing and logistics operations in Ireland, the UK and Holland and a research and development facility (Xerox Research Centre Europe) in Grenoble, France. For more information, visit www.xerox.com.

Xerox® is a trademark of Xerox Corporation. All non-Xerox brands and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

XEROX DOCUMENT IMAGING TECHNOLOGY CHANGES THE WAY PEOPLE COMMUNICATE

Under Embargo until 15th November 2004

Grenoble, France, 15th November 2004 – Scientists at Xerox Research Centre Europe (XRCE) have developed document imaging technology for mobile phones that will evolve them into portable document scanners and can, ultimately, turn mobile phones into document service devices. The software has been built upon innovations in improving document imaging with cameras.

Potential business applications of the technology are numerous, but in summary it could revolutionise the roles of employees working remotely in any vertical sector by enabling individuals to capture information and immediately transmit it e.g. from trade events, presentations, forums, client meetings, screens, whiteboards and other situations.

“We saw the potential of mobile telephones as a vehicle for advanced imaging technology from the outset,” explains Chris Dance, senior scientist and image processing manager, XRCE. “However, we had to wait for mobile phone technology to catch up so that the cameras integrated on them were of a high enough resolution. It wasn’t until this year, with the advent of mega-pixel mobile camera phones, that we saw a potential route to market for our technology.”

Mobile document imaging software works through a four-step process. The first step is to capture the image which is immediately corrected for blurring in the second step. This is followed by conversion of the image to black and white, like a conventional printed image in step three. This involves the elimination of any shadows and reflections that it contains. For colour or handwritten text (e.g. on a typical whiteboard) colour saturation and white balance contrast techniques are applied. Finally, the image is compressed to up to a tenth of the size of a JPEG, the compression standard normally employed for mobile image transmission, which it makes possible to easily send and print the document image. The file can be sent by bluetooth, multimedia messaging (MMS) or facsimile. Once the image reaches a server or desktop PC where optical character recognition (OCR) can be applied, various types of services can be offered based upon the user needs.

“The ability to capture the image in a mobile environment, and then transmit that image whilst on-the-move is just the beginning,” continues Dance. “Once this is achieved, then in the future we will be able to apply other Xerox document technologies such as indexing, retrieval or summarisation. Ultimately we will be applying business-to-business document functions to the basic consumer ‘snapshot’ technology and, in doing so, will have changed the way in which people communicate.”

The technology is part of the licensing programme that Xerox has with its agent IPValue Management Inc. “We are currently engaged in a number of business discussions along the value chain for this technology,” explains Mathieu Chuat, Xerox’s European licensing director “from mobile phone manufacturers to vendors of other types of handheld devices, mobile carriers and application providers.”

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About XRCE
XRCE was founded in 1993 to guide Xerox research activities in Europe. The centre coordinates research, engineering and the TeXnology Showroom, a customer showcase for Xerox research and a technology exchange forum. The centre is also in charge of developing connections within the wider European scientific community through collaborative projects and partnerships.

XRCE creates innovative document technologies for the Xerox Office Group and Xerox Global Services. The group focuses on services that help people access and share documents and knowledge, regardless of device, format, platform, or language, from the desktop or at a distance. R&D competencies lie in content analysis (natural language), machine learning, document structures, image processing and work practices. XRCE research programs combine results from several research threads to transfer technology applications to the Xerox business groups. Current programs include Office Applications, Work Practice Services, and Document Content & Structure.

About Xerox Europe
Xerox Europe, the European operations of Xerox Corporation, markets a comprehensive range of Xerox products, solutions and services, as well as associated supplies and software. Its offerings are focused on three main areas: offices from small to large, production print and graphic arts environments, and services that include consulting, systems design and management, and document outsourcing.

Xerox Europe also has manufacturing and logistics operations in Ireland, the UK and Holland and a research and development facility (Xerox Research Centre Europe) in Grenoble, France. For more information, visit www.xerox.com.

Xerox® is a trademark of Xerox Corporation. All non-Xerox brands and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

Getronics’ Service Endorsed by Portman for over €½ million

London – October 27, 2004 - Getronics, one of the UK’s leading ICT solutions and services providers, has secured a further three-year contract with the Portman Building Society, to provide branch support and maintenance for desktop PCs, printers and infrastructure at its 800 seats in all 114 Portman branches.

“We have a strong network of branches,” explains Phil McCabe, CIO, Portman Building Society. “We differentiate ourselves on customer service in these branches and the IT that supports it is therefore crucial. We have worked with Getronics for over a number of years and remain impressed with the support and services that the partnership provides.”

A strong cultural fit between the two organisations helped cement the contract, which includes a powerful service level agreement to ensure Portman’s customer service is never interrupted. Getronics hopes its performance with the Portman will help generate opportunities in the future to support the IT infrastructure of The Staffordshire, a trading name of the Portman, which operates in the West Midlands.

Roger Whitehead, managing director, Getronics UK and Ireland comments: “Organisations in the retail banking sector operate in a fiercely competitive market and need to be assured that they can offer their customers the best service possible for every minute that their branches are open. The service level agreement and support we have offered the Portman will continue to enable them to concentrate on their core business without having to worry about issues around their IT.”

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About Getronics UK & Ireland:
Getronics is one of the UK's leading Information and Communication Technology (ICT) companies, specialising in the financial services and telecommunications markets. With over 1,200 highly skilled employees, Getronics UK is one of the largest of the 30 Getronics subsidiaries worldwide. Through consulting, integrating, implementing and managing infrastructure and business solutions, the company helps many of the world's largest global and local organisations to maximise the value of their technology investment and improve interaction with their customers.

For further information about Getronics UK and Ireland, please visit www.getronics.co.uk

About Portman Building Society:
Portman Building Society has been established for over 150 years tracing its roots back to 1846, making it the third oldest building society in the UK. It is the 4th largest UK building society with assets of over £15.1 billion and employs over 2,000 staff. With some 150 (Portman and The Staffordshire) branches based predominantly in the south of England, the Society serves over 1.8 million members. For further information visit your local branch of the Portman or call 0845 60 90 600. Details are also available at www.portman.co.uk

The Staffordshire is a trading name of Portman Building Society. The brand was created as a result of the merger between Portman Building Society and Staffordshire Building Society, which completed on 31 December 2003. The Staffordshire has 39 branches in the West Midlands and its administrative centre is in Wolverhampton.

For further information contact...

SUN MICROSYSTEMS AWARDS XEROX MULTI MILLION EURO SERVICES PROJECT

Xerox management of Sun’s European print, copy, fax, and multi-function product fleet, delivers ten per cent cost saving in initial stages

Uxbridge, UK and Ballycoolin, Ireland – 21st October 2004 – Xerox today announces it has been awarded a five year, multi million euro international outsourcing services project, by Sun Microsystems. The project will see Xerox assume total responsibility for the management, maintenance, and streamlining of Sun’s entire fleet of printing, copying, faxing and multi-functional products used by the company’s 11,500 total workforce across 119 sites in 31 European countries as well as South Africa. Sun is using Xerox Office Services to reduce printing costs, improve financial administration and service levels as well as boosting its bottom line right across Europe.

Xerox completed an audit of all devices in Sun’s offices, and proposed a rationalisation plan for how to reduce the quantity of those devices and re-deploy them to ensure Sun maximises utility from each individual device. At the same time, Xerox has also taken on the management of Sun’s different European device manufacturers, consumables suppliers and maintenance contracts, as well as assuming sole responsibility for resolving device queries from all Sun employees through its Xerox Global Services support centre in Ballycoolin, Ireland.

“In effect, the initial benefits we’ve seen already are two-fold,” explains Larry Matarazzi, director, Workplace Resources, Sun Microsystems. “Where financial administration is concerned, we’ve gone from having to process over 3,000 invoices per quarter across Europe from all 27 device, consumables and maintenance suppliers, to just one invoice per country per month from Xerox. Secondly, our employees have reported a dramatic improvement in customer service when it comes to device problem resolution across Europe. We set Xerox a target of resolving 80 per cent of issues immediately, but Xerox is actually resolving close to 99.8 per cent, and Sun has already cut its ongoing European print and document management costs by around ten per cent.”

The next step of the project, which has already begun, is the rationalisation of Sun’s device fleet by Xerox. Xerox will continue to deal with every employee query regarding devices – from how to find a printer driver to how to deal with the IT aspects of moving a Sun office to a new site – but simultaneously work to reduce the number of devices that Sun has. In turn, this will reduce the financial burden of the legacy fleet at Sun. In this phase, Xerox has committed to reduce Sun’s print and document management costs in Europe by 25 per cent.

“We have already received dramatic ‘human’ benefits from Xerox’s work in the form of improved morale and better staff productivity,” continues Matarazzi. “In fact, it’s fair to say we started to see the benefit from day one. For the first time we know exactly how many devices we have in these countries. We’re now looking forward to the financial cost savings that will come from having a device fleet and management set-up that will better suit the needs of our European personnel.” Sun is able to make cost savings through using Xerox’s negotiation and buying power for equipment maintenance and other print consumables, as well as increasing productivity and reducing downtime caused by device failure.

“The first part of the project has gone very well from both companies’ points of view,” says Shaun Pantling, director and general manager, Xerox Global Services, Xerox Europe. “As we continue the rationalisation, we will significantly improve Sun’s asset utilisation by increasing the number of users per device from seven to 17 whilst enhancing functionality to increase productivity.”

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NOTES TO EDITORS

About Xerox Europe
Xerox Europe, the European operations of Xerox Corporation, markets a comprehensive range of Xerox products, solutions and services, as well as associated supplies and software. Its offerings are focused on three main areas: offices from small to large, production print and graphic arts environments, and services that include consulting, systems design and management, and document outsourcing.

Xerox Europe also has manufacturing and logistics operations in Ireland, the UK and Holland and a research and development facility (Xerox Research Centre Europe) in Grenoble, France. For more information, visit www.xerox.com.

Xerox®, The Document Company® and the digital X® are trademarks of Xerox Corporation. All non-Xerox brands and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

About Xerox Global Services
Xerox Global Services, one of the three main business units of Xerox, offers a broad portfolio of services including consulting and systems integration, imaging, content management and outsourcing. We work with our clients to improve and manage their document intensive business processes - everyday processes like customer communications, billing, training, or records management.

Xerox®, The Document Company® and the digital X® are trademarks of Xerox Corporation. All non-Xerox brands and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

About Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer" -- has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW) to its position as a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that make the Net work. Sun can be found in more than 100 countries and on the World Wide Web at http://sun.com

Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun Logo, Solaris, N1 and The Network Is The Computer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All SPARC trademarks are used under license and are trademarks or registered trademarks of SPARC International, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Products bearing SPARC trademarks are based upon an architecture developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc. UNIX is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries, exclusively licensed through X/Open Company, Ltd.

BARCLAYS BANK AWARDS GETRONICS TWO YEAR €34 MILLION CONTRACT

Network and Desktop Services for over 100,000 IT assets across UK

Barclays Bank PLC today announces it has awarded Getronics UK a two-year, €34 million network and desktop services contract to provide maintenance and support for over 100,000 IT assets across its entire UK branch and head office network. The investment will ensure continual improvement in the service quality Barclays provides to its customers every day.

The renewed contract between Getronics UK and Barclays Bank PLC has been constructed to be highly flexible, enabling Getronics to respond to any changes during the first two years without disruption to Barclays’ operations.

“We needed a partner who was very accomplished in managing customer-facing systems and who fully understood the necessity to provide this service without any interruption to our day-to-day operations,” explains Frank Tudor, Supplier Relationship Manager, Barclays Bank PLC. “We have relied on Getronics for over 16 years, and trust their knowledge and understanding of the complexities of our IT systems and processes.”

Roger Whitehead, Managing Director, Getronics UK and Ireland comments: “This renewed engagement gives us great satisfaction as it expands and extends our relationship with Barclays and provides us with a great opportunity to continue to improve our service to the Bank.”

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About Getronics
With approximately 22,000 employees in over 30 countries and ongoing revenues of EUR 2.6 billion in 2003, Getronics is one of the world's leading providers of vendor independent Information and Communication Technology (ICT) solutions and services. Getronics today combines the capabilities of the original Dutch company with those of Wang Global, acquired in 1999, and of the systems and services division of Olivetti. Getronics is ranked second worldwide in network and desktop outsourcing and fourth worldwide in network consulting and integration (Source: IDC 2002-2003). Getronics designs, integrates and manages ICT infrastructures and business solutions for many of the world's largest global and local companies and organisations, helping them maximise the value of their information technology investments. Getronics headquarters are in Amsterdam, with regional offices in Boston, Madrid and Singapore. Getronics’ shares are traded on Euronext Amsterdam ("GTN"). For further information about Getronics, visit www.getronics.com

About Barclays Bank PLC
Barclays PLC is a major global financial services provider primarily offering banking, investment banking and investment management services to millions of customers world wide. Present in over 60 countries, Barclays is a leading provider of global services employing over 76, 200 people worldwide.

With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays Plc has five major divisions:

1. UK Banking, delivers banking products and services to over 14 million personal customers and 746, 000 businesses in the UK through over a variety of channels comprising: 2,064 branches, over 3,790 ATMs and the internet.
2. Barclaycard, is one of the leading credit card businesses in Europe with 11.9 million credit card customers across the UK and Europe. Barclaycard now incorporates all of the Group's UK secured and card lending products and expertise.
3. Barclays Capital, is the investment banking division, providing corporate, institutional and government clients with solutions to their financing and risk management needs.
4. Barclays Global Investors, is one of the world's largest asset managers and a leading provider of investment management products and services.
5. Private Clients and International Banking, combines the wealth management operation and global retail and commercial banking with over 375,000 affluent and high net worth clients as well as 2.2 million international clients.
For further information visit www.barclays.com

For further information...

BT SETS BULLDOG ON SMEs

BT Wholesale today announces two extensions to its June 2002 strategic agreement on Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL) with Bulldog Communications. The updated agreements will benefit both parties and are designed to pass on key advantages for small-to-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK.

In the first extension, BT Wholesale has agreed to distribute Bulldog’s SDSL product, “Office Connect IP” to its existing customer base of service providers. In the second, BT Wholesale has embarked on a trial to integrate Bulldog’s access product from Bulldog’s enabled exchanges in to its own mainstream SDSL service. The new agreements will offer Bulldog a faster route to a larger customer base, and BT Wholesale an alternative delivery capability within the crucial London market.

“It makes good commercial sense for both companies to work together in providing SDSL services,” explains Stuart Horwood, managing director, BT Wholesale Markets. “Through this alliance, more SMEs will get what they need, and both Bulldog and BT Wholesale will be able to make the most of any opportunities. This is a great example of how BT is increasingly working in co-operation with other operators on the UK to utilise their products and services and build them into its own product range.”

The extensions enable both parties to cater to SMEs’ demand for simultaneous ‘upstream’ and ‘downstream’ broadband-calibre communications. While SDSL will have a shorter ‘last mile’ range than low bandwidth ADSL, it is a complimentary service depending on the individual SME needs. For example, it is apt for SMEs in the field of computer aided design, or for any SME needing to: send and receive large amounts of data at the same time; link local area networks using virtual private network technology; or allow internet application hosting services e.g. web or email servers on the SME premises. As the service can fulfil the needs of up to 200 users, it potentially can see an SME through all its communications and online marketing needs during the critical early years of trading.

It will also be a cost effective option for the SME, suitable for a range of applications such as VoIP, and will be offered at 500k, 1 meg and 2 meg speeds.

Richard Greco, CEO of Bulldog, commented, “We’re delighted to be able to augment BT Wholesale’s SDSL portfolio through adding both a wider product range and greater geographical reach. We’re also particularly pleased that the 10:1 SDSL product is being so fully integrated into BT’s own product portfolio. It really is a powerful combination.”

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Notes to Editors

About BT Wholesale
BT Wholesale is the part of BT Group, which provides comprehensive network services and solutions within the UK. Its customers number more than 500 communication companies, fixed and mobile network operators and service providers, including the two other principal BT businesses: BT Retail and BT Global Services.

It offers connectivity to every corner of the UK and its strategy is to continue upgrading its network for next generation services, including broadband, and the converging multi-media future. Its assets in the UK include BT's fibre and copper networks, the core telecommunications network and local exchanges.

The BT Wholesale portfolio includes a comprehensive range of wholesale and service provider products. These include ADSL, convergence, transit, bulk delivery of private circuits, frame relay and ISDN connections, as well as added value services."

About Bulldog
Bulldog has a leading-edge DSL network specifically designed to deliver the highest quality broadband experience to direct residential customers, and value-added broadband solutions for wholesale and reseller partners. Bulldog is a DSL specialist; the company provides specialist technology expertise to its partners and customers.

Deploying the latest and most advanced DSL technology, Bulldog offers the broadest selection of DSL products and services commercially available in the market today and is continually expanding its state-of-the art network.

Customers can visit Bulldog’s website www.bulldogdsl.com to order products and services online that are available today, and pre-register for others coming soon. For enquiries by phone, please call 0845 452 0052 (local rate).

For further media information...

BT WHOLESALE THWARTS SILO MANAGEMENT TO CREATE MORE LOTTERY MILLIONAIRES

- ISDN2 contract with Camelot, Global Crossing underpins new national lottery network –

BT Wholesale today completes a nationwide upgrade of Camelot’s network of 25,000 lottery machines to ISDN2. The £70 million, seven-year contract won in March 2002, enables Camelot to offer a wider range of lottery games nationally. The project, completed with Global Crossing as the intermediary, required BT Wholesale to completely revamp its internal processes to suit the brief, including product classification, lead times, day-to-day planning and implementation, and full logistical back-up to hardware, technical support and customer service. The success of the project has given senior BT Wholesale management cause to reconsider how new business is approached, and is likely to pave the way for similarly ambitious deals in the future.

“As soon as Global Crossing approached us early last year we turned our entire method of project implementation on its head”, explains Greg Forde, client director, International Fixed Sector, BT Wholesale. “Part of our business strategy is to break down barriers between BT Wholesale and the rest of the organisation so that more value can be offered via our collective infrastructure and intellectual property. This deal did just that – every single detail of the entire project was planned on storyboards, with everyone involved in the project attending the first planning meetings. The 25,000 installations were treated as a brand new product classification, and our lead times for it were altered to ensure we could complete the paperwork and keep our promises to retailers hosting the machines. It’s the first time we’ve done anything like this but, given the success, it won’t be the last”.

Legal guidelines in the UK meant that BT Wholesale can only correspond with network operators or telecoms organisations. Global Crossing therefore offered the contract on Camelot’s behalf, with Global Crossing retaining a separate contract. BT Wholesale had to establish ‘Chinese walls’ within its own organisation, as well as non-disclosure agreements between BT Wholesale and parts of BT Retail (in addition to Global Crossing and Camelot) in order to fulfil the contract. It is the first time BT as a whole has worked in this way, and also the first time that BT Wholesale engineers have used third-party hardware to complete a project. BT Wholesale devised a tailored training programme – covering both customer service and technical issues - for all 1,100 engineers working on the project, which had to be passed and certified before each was allowed to visit one of the 25,000 sites. Engineers were supported in the field firstly by a BT Wholesale help desk, and secondly by further technical support from Camelot and Global Crossing. From arranging an appointment to have an engineer visit a site to switching the machine to ISDN2 took no more than 20 days.

Following BT Wholesale’s contract win, a pilot began in April 2002 and the project in full during August 2002. Communication from each lottery machine in branches of Tesco’s, W.H. Smith and other retailers throughout the country is now carried via internal cabling to a BT ISDN2 line, through the BT network, and back to the TV studio at Camelot that holds the lottery draw machines. ISDN2 has proved to be the most cost-effective network option in terms of repair, maintenance and management, and the network contract was originally offered as part of the Lottery Commission’s directive to maintain fair competition for bidding network operators.

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Notes to Editors

BT Wholesale:
BT Wholesale is the part of BT Group which provides comprehensive network services and solutions within the UK. Its customers number more than 500 communication companies, fixed and mobile network operators and service providers, including the two other principal BT businesses: BT Retail and BT Global Services.

It offers connectivity to every corner of the UK and its strategy is to continue upgrading its network for next generation services, including broadband, and the converging multi-media future. Its assets in the UK include BT's fibre and copper networks, the core telecommunications network and local exchanges.

The BT Wholesale portfolio includes a comprehensive range of wholesale and service provider products. These include ADSL, convergence, transit, bulk delivery of private circuits, frame relay and ISDN connections, as well as added value services.