iBasis, Inc, a leader in international long distance, VoIP, and prepaid calling cards, today announced at The Global Telecommunications Meeting that Callmate Telips, the first long distance and international private operator in Pakistan, has interconnected with The iBasis Network(TM) for international voice services. The interconnection enables Callmate Telips to route international voice traffic over The iBasis Network, the leading global VoIP network, as well as complete calls for iBasis in Pakistan.

Callmate Telips has taken advantage of the iBasis DirectVoIP interoperability solution to implement a direct IP connection between its Huawei IP Backbone infrastructure and the iBasis Cisco Powered(TM) network. Interoperability was assured through extensive testing in the DirectVoIP Certified Program, thereby simplifying the process of interconnecting the Callmate Telips infrastructure to iBasis” global VoIP network.

Callmate Telips will benefit from the lower capital and operational costs of VoIP and will have immediate access to iBasis” global VoIP network, which comprises direct routes to more than 100 countries.

&#34As the first company to be awarded the Long Distance and International (LDI) license in Pakistan and the first to launch LDI operations, we wanted to complement that advantage with high quality service and efficiency in our global network partner,&#34 said Ajmal Ansari, CEO of Callmate Telips. &#34iBasis has proven its leadership in all aspects of international VoIP, and we look forward to a very successful relationship.&#34

&#34Callmate Telips is a leading provider of calling card and international long distance services and an innovator in using advanced technology to offer high quality and reasonably-priced services to consumers,&#34 said Ofer Gneezy, president and CEO of iBasis. &#34This new relationship reflects the continued migration of international traffic to VoIP which promises to make worldwide communication economically feasible for developing nations.&#34

With only four million fixed telephone lines serving a population of more than 150 million (as of November 2003), demand for telecommunications services in Pakistan is very high. Minutes from international calls originating in Pakistan grew 33% from 2002 to 2003, with Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, United States, and Germany the most popular routes.

More than 1.7 billion minutes of international traffic terminated in Pakistan in 2003, representing more than 46% growth during the prior two years, according to Telegeography 2005. The interconnection with Callmate Telips provides iBasis with tremendous opportunity to capture significant share of both ends of this growing market.