Update November 2000: Poland

1. Telecom Operators

The strategic investor of Telekomunikacja Polska S.A. - France Telecom (FT) and Kulczyk Holdings consortium signed the agreement on 25 July of 2000 after completing negotiations to buy 35% of TPSA’s shares from the owner, the Ministry of Treasury. The transaction has not been realised yet. As reported in "Rzeczpospolita" FT will pay in October 2000.

By the end of 2000 TPSA will have 11million telephone lines (95% digitised). DWDM and LDMS technologies will be implemented in the POLPAK netbone. The number of modems operated by TPSA will increase from 18 000 (August 2000) to 60 000. The number of SDI users will increase from 25 000 to 40 000.

It is expected that Polkomtel, Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa PTC, Netia and Centertel/TP S.A. will take part in the tender for five UMTS licences, which will be called at the beginning of October 2000 and finalised by the end of year 2000. All these operators ask the Ministry of telecommunications to reduce the number of planned UMTS licences from five to four.

The structure of shareholders of three long-distance operators, Netia1, NOM, and NG-K, is as follows:

• Netia 1 sp. z o.o. (The President - David Zach) is owned by Netia Holdings S.A. 25,5%; PKO BP 22%; Tele-Tech Investment Sp. z o.o. 22%; Telia AB 11%; STOEN S.A. 7%; Neta Network S.A. 5%; Netia Telekom SA: Wloclawek, Warszawa, Telemedia, Silesia, Kalisz - 1,5% each.
• Niezalezny Operator Miedzystrefowy NOM sp. z o.o. shares are divided by Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne 50%; Polski Koncern Naftowy PKN 35% and Tel-Energo 15%.
• NG Koleje Telekomunikacja sp. z o.o. (The President - Steven Marshall) - Polskie Koleje Panstwowe 42,5%, Energis 23,75%; National Grid 23,75% and Centrala 10%.

Dyrekcja Teleinformatyki Kolejowej PKP (Polish National Railways) is a new structure created after the merger of Centrum Informatyki Kolejnictwa and Dyrekcja Telekomunikacji Kolejowej PKP. The next step will be transformation of "Dyrekcja" into an independent company owned 100% by the Treasury for further privatisation.

2. Governmental organisations

Minister Tomasz Szyszko is taking part in a lot of conferences and meetings regarding planned UMTS licences in Poland. Meetings with potential foreign investors are organised as well.

Mr Karol Dzialoszynski, the Member of Parliament and vice chairman of the Parliamentary Commission of Transport and Telecommunications, was the speaker during the debate on Building Basis for Information Society in Poland.

Wlodzimierz Marcinski is the Counsellor in the Republic of Poland Mission in the European Union, Brussels, responsible for Chapter 19 "Telecommunications and IST" in negotiations of EU accession and Information Systems in EU institutions.

3. IT Companies

Prokom Software is going to buy 9,99% of Softbank shares by 2 October 2000 for 128 million PLZ. Such purchase is the first step to the future merger of two Polish companies. Prokom Software is on the second position of the Polish computer companies. Softbank S.A. is on eleventh position in ranking.

Elektrim S.A. has made an acquisition in the Internet sector, buying 55% share of Poland.com portal of MCI Management (Tomasz Czechowicz - the President) for over 16 million Euro. This is the highest investment in the Internet company in Poland. After this transaction the ownership of Poland.com is as follows: Elektrim - 55%, MCI Management - 30,6%, Vogel Publishing - 13,9%.

Elektrim Online division of Elektrim Group EL is the owner of Easy Net e-commerce company, and it is planning to acquire Access.com. All these companies will be dedicated to retailed clients. Elektrim OnLine is going to create or buy a portal for SMEs and financial portal. The head of Elektrim OnLine is Thomas Kolaja.

The main shareholders of Optimus - BRE Bank and Zbigniew Jakubas (the owner of Multico) - will offer Onet.pl portal shares on the stock market. It is not decided yet if it is Neuer Markt, Nasdaq or GPW (Warsaw).

Logotec Engineering S.A, the Polish software company from Myslowice, will establish the new company Logotec Engineering Deutschland. Logotec Engineering already has shares in Logotec Engineering Belgia (51%) and LTE Consulting GmbH Niemcy (51%). The President of Logotec Engineering is Jerzy Dryndos. He is the holder of 67 shares, 24% of the shares of Regionalne Fundusze Inwestycyjne.

During these two years, Crowley Data Poland will invest 100 million dollars to expand the new metropolitan broadband wireless network DataStar. The aim is to serve 90% of institutions and business in Poland, mainly banking, finance, telecommunications media and media sectors, IPS, administration and universities. The President of Crowley Data Poland is Marek Bogucki.