France Telecom Picks Equant

At a special meeting of Equant N.V.'s Supervisory Board held on January 22, 2005, France Telecom, Equant's controlling shareholder, proposed to acquire the full ownership of Equant's business through an acquisition of substantially all of the assets and liabilities of Equant N.V., followed by a distribution of the purchase price to Equant's shareholders and the liquidation of Equant N.V.

According to the proposal, Equant shareholders would ultimately receive a distribution of ˆ4.20 per ordinary or preferred share, subject to applicable withholding and similar taxes.

The Supervisory Board appointed a Special Committee comprised of the three independent directors to evaluate the offer. The Special Committee has retained Rothschild North America as its financial adviser and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP as its counsel.

In addition, Equant also announces that: its 2004 results, while still preliminary and not yet finalized, are expected to be in line with the guidance previously communicated to the financial markets in term of sales and EBITDA;

Despite a better than expected year-end cash position, the anticipated further deterioration in the Company's results in 2005 and later years has led the Company to request from France Telecom a $250 million credit facility to assist the Company in meeting its financing requirements into 2006. France Telecom has agreed to provide that facility.

Equant serves thousands of the world's top companies, with the industry's most extensive portfolio of communications services and network solutions, including the market-leading IP VPN used by nearly 1,300 global businesses. Equant, a subsidiary of France Telecom, consistently leads industry surveys in corporate user satisfaction.