April 20, 2003 LONDON – Nortel Networks* [NYSE/TSX: NT] today announced the deployment of an e-Government network for Exeter City Council, enabling local government and its services to be more accessible to the city’s 114,000 residents. The new solution, deployed in conjunction with Nexus Open Systems, allows Exeter to embrace the ‘24x7’ services concept and provides excellent facilities for those who work and live in the city.

“All our programs contribute toward meeting the e-Government targets of 2005” said Paul Evans, head of IT services, Exeter City Council. “We are putting all services on-line and modernizing information technology, giving people richer access to information. Infrastructure is one of the key components."

Nortel Networks data enterprise portfolio is fundamental in helping Exeter City Council meet the United Kingdom government objectives of having most of services handled electronically by 2005. The new network will provide the bandwidth, flexibility and resilience necessary for the transformation from a paper-based government business to electronic format, making government services available through any means of access -- face-to-face, telephone or over the Internet.

The Exeter City Council network is based on Nortel Networks enterprise data portfolio, including Nortel Networks BayStack* Ethernet Switches, Nortel Networks Passport* 8600 Routing Switches and Nortel Networks Optivity* network management.

“This is the foundation for many of the services that the Council is providing,” said Evans. “The confidence I need, and the confidence I have, in Nortel Networks and Nexus Open Systems enables me to not be distracted by network problems. Now I have the appropriate infrastructure in place and, like my users, I can start taking it for granted.”

With the upgraded data network, residents can now benefit from new applications which require a ‘mission critical’ infrastructure, such as video conferencing and teleworking, with ‘24x7’ support for new services including IP telephony. This was provided by distributed multi-link trunking, a Nortel Networks innovation available in Nortel Networks Passport 8600 which allows for fail-safe connectivity to the network centre.

“Together with Nortel Networks, we are able to provide customers such as Exeter City Council with the right solution to address their networking needs,” said Darren Scully, commercial director, Nexus Open Systems. “We design, install and maintain truly scalable communications networks allowing our customers to be ready to embrace voice and data convergence.”

Exeter City Council relied on Nexus Open Systems for technical advice for design, selection and support during implementation, and continues to rely on them for ongoing support.

“In today’s competitive environment it is essential to provide customers with tangible return on investment,” said Peter Kelly, president, enterprise, Nortel Networks, EMEA. “We feel that this new data network fits the Council’s requirements perfectly."

“Together with Nexus Open Systems we were capable to price it competitively, install it easily, and manage and configure it. As a result we will be able to see more people taking full advantage of technology, changing the way people gain access to information.”

Exeter City Council serves a population of 114,000 with a wide range of services, everything from refuse collection and recycling to providing housing, planning and environmental health services. As the regional capital of the Southwest, the city is a magnet for businesses and organisations as well as for tourists. In addition to its services for residents the Council provides a range of services to meet visitor and business needs. One of the challenges the City Council faces is providing access to these services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Council has enthusiastically embraced the concept of ‘24x7’ service accessibility for all citizens through multiple channels and views information and communications technology (ICT) as playing a significant role in cost-effectively meeting the government’s target of 100% delivery of services that can be provided electronically by the year 2005. For more information please visit our website www.exeter.gov.uk

Nexus Open Systems deliver Computer Network and Technology Solutions to companies and organisations of all sizes that require true technical expertise to meet their goals. The company has invested heavily both in its staff and strategic alliances with Industry Leading Vendors and Providers. These alliances are bonded by a single focus, to develop the skills within the company around industry standard technology through company and individual accreditation. Our portfolio of products and services provides our customers with cost effective and resilient business computing solutions with extended technical support from a single supplier. Partnering with us and our sister company, Nexus Open Software creates a single cohesive provider of integrated Computer Network Systems and Rapid Application Development. Please visit www.nexusos.co.uk for more information.

Nortel Networks is an industry leader and innovator focused on transforming how the world communicates and exchanges information. The Company is supplying its service provider and enterprise customers with communications technology and infrastructure to enable value-added IP data, voice and multimedia services spanning Wireless Networks, Wireline Networks, Enterprise Networks, and Optical Networks. As a global company, Nortel Networks does business in more than 150 countries. More information about Nortel Networks can be found on the Web at www.nortelnetworks.com