Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) and software provider Comptel Corporation (NASDAQ OMX Helsinki: CTL1V) are to provide Chorus, New Zealand’s largest telecommunications infrastructure company, with a new Fibre Fulfillment and Inventory Solution for their open access fibre services. The solution will assist Retail Service Providers in New Zealand to create innovative new services and deliver a great experience for customers using the new Ultra Fast Broadband network.

In May 2011, Chorus was selected by Crown Fibre Holdings Ltd (CFH) to roll out Ultra Fast Broadband in 24 of the 33 areas nationwide. This contract – with Crown funding up to NZ$929 million – will see Chorus deploy around 17,000km of new fibre optic cables to areas covering around 70% of the homes and businesses within the UFB Fibre to the Home footprint.

As a provider of open access network services, Chorus does not have direct contact with business and consumer customers, instead Chorus works with many different phone and internet providers to facilitate access to the Chorus network and assists Retail Service Providers to develop innovative new products and services for both residential broadband and business services in areas such as healthcare and education.

Working together, Chorus, Alcatel-Lucent and Comptel will ensure that Retail Service Providers can quickly and efficiently develop new product offerings and provision new customer connections on the Chorus ultra-fast broadband network.

Andrew Miller, managing director of Alcatel-Lucent in New Zealand said: “Alcatel-Lucent’s successful collaboration with the National Broadband Network initiative in Australia, combined with our specific local knowledge, made us the logical choice to lead this important project for Chorus. Providing a fulfillment and inventory system that is easily adaptable to the ultrafast broadband needs of Chorus’ customers is critical to the success of the network rollout.”

Mr. Miller added: “We are also delighted to be working with Comptel to provide an OSS system that will assist Chorus and Chorus’ customers to move quickly toward the achievement of New Zealand’s national broadband targets.”

Kari Jokela, vice president, Asia-Pacific, Comptel said: “This deployment with Chorus demonstrates the continued traction of our Next Generation Fulfillment strategy, and we’re looking forward to seeing through the customer’s high-speed broadband roll-out in New Zealand. Alcatel-Lucent’s expertise as a leading systems integrator complements Comptel’s flexible approach to service design, combined with our delivery capabilities, providing a fulfillment solution perfectly suited to Chorus’ unique requirements.”

The Alcatel-Lucent and Comptel solution for Chorus
Alcatel-Lucent will serve as the systems integrator for the Comptel Fulfillment CF8.0 implementation project, providing professional services consisting of project management as well as the design, building, testing, and deployment of the operational support system (OSS) for the network. Comptel was chosen to provide its complete Comptel Fulfillment CF8.0 solution consisting of Comptel Catalog, Comptel Order Management, Comptel Service and Resource Inventory, and Comptel Provisioning and Activation.

The Comptel system is built upon a catalog-driven fulfillment architecture that will be accessed by the service providers through a Chorus portal or a business-to-business gateway. The system will provide comprehensive management of customer service queries and orders, service qualification and feasibility requests, as well as associated Service Level Management to assure that customers receive the services they expect.

The contract began in October 2012 and will run through to the end of 2013.

ABOUT COMPTEL CORPORATION
Since 1986, Comptel has been a trusted provider of telecom business and operations software and services. The company has helped more than 280 service providers across 85 countries meet over one billion subscribers’ communications and infotainment needs. Comptel has leveraged its expertise in service fulfilment, mediation, charging and policy control, and predictive social analytics to equip service providers with solutions that enhance customer engagement and, in turn, create revenue, reduce costs and lessen churn. The company has more than 600 employees worldwide, and net sales were EUR 77 million in 2011. For more information, visit: www.comptel.com.

ABOUT ALCATEL-LUCENT (EURONEXT PARIS AND NYSE: ALU)
The long-trusted partner of service providers, enterprises and governments around the world, Alcatel-Lucent is a leading innovator in the field of networking and communications technology, products and services. The company is home to Bell Labs, one of the world's foremost research centers, responsible for breakthroughs that have shaped the networking and communications industry. Alcatel-Lucent was named one of MIT Technology Review's 2012 Top 50 list of the "World's Most Innovative Companies" for breakthroughs such as lightRadio™, which cuts power consumption and operating costs on wireless networks while delivering lightning fast Internet access. Through such innovations, Alcatel-Lucent is making communications more sustainable, more affordable and more accessible as we pursue our mission - Realizing the Potential of a Connected World.

With operations in more than 130 countries and one of the most experienced global services organizations in the industry, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with global reach. The Company achieved revenues of Euro 15.3 billion in 2011 and is incorporated in France and headquartered in Paris.

For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on: http://www.alcatel-lucent.com, read the latest posts on the Alcatel-Lucent blog http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/blog and follow the Company on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Alcatel_Lucent.