VSNL Restores Internet Services within 24 Hours Following Egypt Submarine Cable Break

  
    
  
  
    
      VSNL (NYSE: VSL), a leading communications solutions provider, confirmed 
      today that the company restored a majority of its IP connectivity into 
      the MENA region within 24 hours of the Egypt cable breakdown on Thursday.
    
    
      On January 30, 2008, the SEA-ME-WE 4 and other undersea cables were 
      severed off the coast of Alexandria, Egypt. These cables serve as the 
      principal Internet connections between the Middle East and westward on 
      to Europe and North America. They also connect the Indian subcontinent 
      and South East Asia. The impact of the cut cables resulted in degraded 
      Internet service to and from the Middle East. VSNL has an Internet 
      backbone that circles the world allowing both eastward and westward 
      connectivity from all regions, a major differentiator among carriers. 
      This allows VSNL to leverage its ownership in a vast array of diverse 
      undersea and terrestrial cables assets.
    
    
      “VSNL is proud of the team effort that united 
      the company’s network and operations teams 
      across three continents to execute an ambitious recovery plan in 24 
      hours,” said Radwan Mousalli, Managing 
      Director - MENA, VSNL. “Our cable layout and 
      design allowed us to survive a double cable failure as well as develop 
      enough capacity eastward across the Pacific for the internet to reach 
      North America and Europe.”
    
    
      Although many other carriers in the region lost service completely, VSNL 
      was able to restore majority of their Middle East customers traffic 
      utilizing the SEA-ME-WE 3,SEA-ME-WE 4 eastbound and TIC cable following 
      the cut. Unlike other carriers, VSNL’s global 
      undersea presence and strength of technical expertise allowed the 
      company to continue service through multiple cable systems. Many 
      enterprises chose to buy from cable operators who have capacity on a 
      number of systems because protection is nearly guaranteed and if 
      necessary, restoration is achieved quicker.
    
    
      In the case of India too services were largely restored within 24 hours 
      of the cable cut by diverting traffic through the TIC and SEA-ME-WE 3 
      cables.
    
    
      For more information on VSNL’s services and 
      cable systems please visit www.vsnlinternational.com.
    
    
      About VSNL
    
    
      Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited, along with its global subsidiaries (VSNL) 
      is a leading global communications solutions company offering 
      next-generation voice, data and value-added services to enterprises, 
      carriers and retail consumers. A member of the $ 29 billion Tata Group, 
      VSNL was voted the Best Wholesale Service Provider at the World 
      Communications Awards, 2006. VSNL is one of the world's largest 
      providers of wholesale international voice services and operates one of 
      the largest global submarine cable networks. VSNL's customer base 
      includes 1,500 carriers, 450 mobile operators, 10,000 enterprises, about 
      500,000 Internet subscribers and about 350 Wi-Fi public hotspots.
    
    
      Rated amongst the Top 100 Emerging Global Challengers by the Boston 
      Consulting Group, VSNL has offices in over 35 countries including the 
      United States of America, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, 
      Singapore, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and India. VSNL's global transmission 
      network of over 200,000 route kilometers and its IP core with 200 points 
      of presence, enable a range of services that include voice, private 
      leased circuits, IP VPN, Internet access, global Ethernet, hosting, 
      mobile signaling and other IP services.
    
    
      Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and 
      the National Stock Exchange of India, and its American Depositary 
      Receipts (ADRs) are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: VSL).
    
    
      www.vsnl.com
    
    
      Forward-looking and cautionary statements
    
    
      Certain words and statements in this release concerning VSNL and its 
      prospects, and other statements relating to VSNL's expected financial 
      position, business strategy, the future development of VSNL's operations 
      and the general economy in India, are forward-looking statements. These 
      forward looking statements include, among others, statements concerning 
      VSNL's communications and information services business, its advantages 
      and VSNL's strategy for continuing to pursue its business, the 
      anticipated development and launch of new services in its business, the 
      anticipated dates on which VSNL will begin providing certain services or 
      reach specific milestones in the development and implementation of its 
      business strategy, the growth and recovery of the communications and 
      information services, industry, expectations as to its future revenue, 
      margins, expenses and capital requirements and other statements of 
      expectations, beliefs, future plans and strategies, anticipated 
      developments and other matters that are not historical facts. Such 
      statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other 
      factors, including financial, regulatory and environmental, as well as 
      those relating to industry growth and trend projections, which may cause 
      actual results, performance or achievements of VSNL, or industry 
      results, to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such 
      forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on 
      numerous assumptions regarding VSNL's present and future business 
      strategies and the environment in which VSNL will operate in the future. 
      The important factors that could cause actual results, performance or 
      achievements to differ materially from such forward-looking statements 
      include, among others, failure to increase the volume of traffic on 
      VSNL's network, failure to develop new products and services that meet 
      customer demands and generate acceptable margins, failure to 
      successfully complete commercial testing of new technology and 
      information systems to support new products and services, including 
      voice transmission services, failure to stabilize or reduce the rate of 
      price compression on certain of VSNL's communications services, failure 
      to integrate strategic acquisitions and changes in government policies 
      or regulations of India and, in particular, changes relating to the 
      administration of VSNL's industry, and, in general, the economic, 
      business and credit conditions in India. Additional factors that could 
      cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially 
      from such forward-looking statements, many of which are not in VSNL's 
      control, include, but are not limited to, those risk factors discussed 
      in VSNL's various filings with the United States Securities and Exchange 
      Commission. These filings are available at www.sec.gov.