Deployment of Akamai servers on China Telecom backbone further extends Akamai's global footprint and improves Internet performance for China's online audience

HostReview.com
Thursday, November 13, 2003; 12:00 AM

Cambridge, MA and Herndon, VA - November 12, 2003 - Akamai Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: AKAM), the world's largest on demand distributed computing platform for conducting profitable e-business, and China Telecom (USA) Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of China Telecom, the leading telecom provider in China, today announced an agreement to improve the quality and reliability of Internet content and applications delivery for China's Internet users. The deployment enables Akamai to further expand the global reach of its platform for high-performance delivery of information from the Internet's edge.

China has evolved as one of the world's largest and rapidly growing Internet markets, with 33 million ISP accounts in 2002 as estimated by Gartner. Gartner has reported that it expects the number of individual Internet accounts in China to reach 71.7 million by the end of 2006*. To support the growth of the market, China Telecom is constantly seeking business relationships to maximize the performance of its services for both business and residential customers. Akamai's broad deployment of edge servers on China Telecom's network will provide China's Internet users with enhanced quality and reliability of Internet content, including static and dynamic content, streaming media, and Web applications, from hundreds of global organizations that utilize Akamai's market-leading content and application delivery services.

"As one of the leading organizations to establish an Internet presence in the Asia-Pacific region, we pride ourselves on our advantageous and resourceful network," said Weihua Zhang, President of China Telecom (USA). "The installation by Akamai of their servers on China Telecom's network provides the two-fold benefit of bandwidth optimization and performance acceleration of the world's most popular Internet content and applications for our subscribers. Our relationship with Akamai will also enhance the increasing amount of information exchange between the Asia-Pacific and North American regions."

"Given its substantial presence and subscriber base, China Telecom is a strategic network partner for Akamai, and we're excited about this important relationship," said George Conrades, chairman and CEO, Akamai. "Working with China Telecom (USA) to bring this agreement to fruition was a gratifying experience, and we look forward to collaborating with them on China Telecom's future infrastructure extension needs to support the growing base of Internet subscribers in the Asia-Pacific region."

As the world's largest globally-distributed computing platform, Akamai is enabling The Business Internet, alleviating much of the congestion and vulnerability of the Internet with over 14,000 servers deployed widely in 1,100 subscriber ISP networks in 70 countries, making it a predictable, scalable, and secure platform for conducting profitable e-business.

About China Telecom (USA) Corp.
China Telecom is the largest fixed network carrier in China with more than 50 years of telecom operation experience. China Telecom currently operates a variety of domestic and international public fixed telecommunication networks, including local wireless loops; provides voice, data, IP, image, and multimedia information services. China Telecom (USA) Corp. (NYSE: CHA), a Delaware corporation, is a wholly owned subsidiary of China Telecom. Holding a 214 license in the U.S., China Telecom (USA) is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. Providing its customers with U.S.- China knowledge and technical expertise, China Telecom (USA) is able to assist its customers from a full range of China Domestic, China - U.S., and International voice and data products and services. China Telecom (USA)'s comprehensive product portfolio can meet all aspects of a business's needs, from local loops to international circuits. For more information, visit www.chinatelecomusa.com.

About Akamai
Akamai®—The Business Internet, is the world's largest on demand distributed computing platform for conducting profitable e-business. Overcoming the inherent limitations of the Internet, Akamai's services ensure a high-performing, scalable, and secure environment for organizations to cost effectively extend and control their e-business infrastructure. Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Akamai's industry-leading services, matched with world-class customer care, are used by hundreds of today's most successful enterprises and government agencies around the globe. For more information, visit www.akamai.com.

Contacts: Caryn Brownell Media Relations Akamai Technologies Inc. 617-444-2524 caryn.brownell@akamai.com Cindy Zhou Marketing Communications China Telecom USA 703-787-0088 cindyz@chinatelecomusa.com