Associated Press votes for Colt to connect new London studios for UK General Election

Sandefjord, Norway and Oxnard, California, May 7, 2010 – Colt, a leading European provider of business communications and IT managed services, today announced it is providing the high definition broadcast connectivity for AP Global Media Services’ new studios in central London, which will be going live in time to provide coverage of the UK General Election this Thursday May 6.

AP Global Media Services, the newsgathering facilities arm of The Associated Press, is offering the new studio and production space on Haymarket to broadcasters and production companies for election coverage. It includes five HD-capable studios overlooking some of London’s most recognizable landmarks, including Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Trafalgar Square and the London Eye.

In just six weeks, Colt has linked the new studios with AP’s Camden office offering uncompressed bi-directional SD/HD circuits with integrated data network connectivity. Colt is using Nevion’s Ventura Series video to fiber mapping transport products over its own resilient fiber network for this solution.

Alla Salehian, director of AP Global Media Services said, “The UK elections mark the launch of these new and unique live shot studios. We will be relying on Colt’s expertise in fiber connectivity to ensure uninterrupted coverage from our studios on Haymarket to our HQ in Camden.”

“We are delighted to be supporting AP during this high profile news period and onwards,” said Tanuja Randery, head of Colt’s UK Major Enterprise business. “It is testimony to the breadth and quality of our information delivery platform that we were able to meet AP’s needs within the timescales.”

Colt meets the communications, data and information technology needs of hundreds of media organizations across Europe including Europe’s top ten broadcasters. Its services range from providing contribution and distribution networks to storing video content for broadcasters and providing a complete information delivery platform for advertisers and publishers. Colt’s own fiber network connects more than a thousand media locations across Europe, giving the industry fast access to highly reliable connectivity and IT solutions.

About Associated Press

The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the largest and most-trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day, more than half the world's population sees or reads news sourced from AP. www.aptn.com

About Colt

Colt is Europe’s leading information delivery platform, enabling its customers to share, process and store their vital business information. Colt is an established leader in delivering integrated networking and IT managed services to major organizations, mid-sized businesses and wholesale customers. Colt operates a 13-country, 25,000km network that includes metropolitan area networks in 34 major European cities with direct fiber connections into 16,000 buildings and 19 Colt data centers.

Colt is listed on the London Stock Exchange (COLT). Information about Colt and its services can be found at www.colt.net.

About Nevion

Nevion is a video transport solution provider for broadcasters, telecommunications service providers and government entities worldwide. With the most flexible and scalable video processing and transport over any network, Nevion puts power, reliability and quality behind global media transport solutions. Its Ventura, Flashlink and VikinX product lines deliver the full range of content transport, signal processing, and routing solutions, with comprehensive system management and control. With the lowest carbon footprint in the industry, Nevion products are the greenest of their kind, reducing customers’ operational expenses and benefiting the environment. Nevion maintains its world headquarters in Sandefjord, Norway and U.S. headquarters in Oxnard, CA, with global offices in Singapore, Dubai, and the United Kingdom. For more information, please visit www.nevion.com.

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