VersaTel Telecom Strengthens Position in Internet Market With SUN-Netscape Alliance - VersaTel Telecom International, Sun-Netscape Alliance - Company Business and Marketing

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, August 16, 1999

VersaTel Telecom International, N.V.,(NASDAQ:VRSA; AEX:VRSA) a rapidly growing, facilities-based, competitive provider of voice, data and Internet services in the Benelux, Wednesday announced that it has signed a contract to work with the Sun-Netscape Alliance to build a large scale Internet platform.

This platform is being mutually developed and is expected to be launched shortly. This will enable VersaTel to deliver highly differentiated value added services to its customers.

The contract with the Sun-Netscape Alliance represents a major achievement in VersaTel's strategy to become a leading player in the Internet market. By working with the Sun-Netscape Alliance, VersaTel will expand its portfolio of services to include wholesale Internet solutions for ISP's, distribution channels and large corporate customers. The recent acquisitions of CS Net, SpeedPort, VuurWerk, SVIANED and ITinera, in conjunction with the relationship with the Sun-Netscape Alliance, strengthen VersaTel's position as a leading broadband multimedia service provider in the Benelux.

The Sun-Netscape Alliance will develop scaleable, carrier-grade network services for VersaTel based on their iPlanet Netscape Suitespot, Publishing Xpert, ECXpert and BillerXpert products. The Alliance has the products, services, experience and expertise to be a strong strategic technology provider for VersaTel. VersaTel's customers will benefit from the advantages of Sun's experience in developing mission-critical network systems and the Sun-Netscape Alliances' expertise in Internet applications. This relationship will enable VersaTel to offer solutions to its customers and become a leading supplier in the e-commerce marketplace of the future.

Gary Mesch, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of VersaTel Telecom, stated: "The contract with the Sun-Netscape Alliance is a first step in building a valuable long-term relationship. By jointly developing value-added Internet and e-commerce solutions, VersaTel will be able to provide its customers with high quality Internet products and services. We have seen the valuable business potential and moved quickly to install this robust platform."

Larry Hendrickson, Chief Technology Officer of VersaTel Telecom commented: "The broad functionality, reliability and scalability of our Internet platform will allow VersaTel to provide encrypted, value-added and reliable Internet services to its customers. I look forward to working with the Alliance to develop and deploy leading edge technology for our customers."

VersaTel Telecom International N.V. is a rapidly growing, facilities-based, competitive network operator primarily focused on the Benelux, which consists of The Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, and is based in Amsterdam. VersaTel's vision is to become the leading fully-integrated provider of local access, facilities-based broadband services, including voice, data and Internet services for businesses in the densely populated, high-income Benelux countries. Founded in October 1995, the Company holds full telecommunications licenses in Netherlands and Belgium and has over 16,000 business customers and 425 employees. VersaTel's investors include lead investor NeSBIC and its IT and Telecoms specialized NeSBIC CTE Fund, Paribas Deelnemingen and NPM Capital. VersaTel is currently building a broadband network that will use the latest network technologies to provide business customers in the Benelux with high bandwidth voice, data and Internet services. VersaTel is a publicly traded company on the Amsterdam Stock Exchanges and Nasdaq National Market under the symbol "VRSA". News and information are available at http://www.versatel.com/.> America Online, Inc. and Sun Microsystems, Inc. formed the Sun-Netscape Alliance to provide easy to deploy, comprehensive enterprise and e-commerce solutions to business partners and other companies competing in today's Net Economy. The Alliance product portfolio provides customers with the industry's most scalable, integrated infrastructure software and a family of production ready e-commerce applications. The products are offered on the industry's most widely available product platforms, including DEC, HP, IBM, Linux, SGI, Microsoft Windows, and Sun. The alliance software product portfolio includes: messaging and calendar, collaboration, web, application, directory, and certificate servers. The Alliance also offers a family of production-ready applications for e-commerce, including commerce exchange, procurement, selling, and billing.

Founded in 1985, America Online, Inc., based in Dulles, Virginia, is the world's leader in interactive services, Web brands, Internet technologies, and e-commerce services. America Online, Inc. operates: two worldwide Internet services, America Online, with more than 17 million members, and CompuServe, with approximately 2 million members; several leading Internet brands including ICQ and Digital City, Inc.; the Netscape Netcenter and AOL.COM portals; and the Netscape Navigator and Communicator browsers. Through its strategic alliance with Sun Microsystems, the Company develops and offers easy-to-deploy, end-to-end e-commerce and enterprise solutions for companies operating in the Net Economy.