Westchester Advises Internet Service Provider Nildram on its Sale to PIPEX Communications plc

LONDON - August 9, 2004

Westchester Associates Limited (www.westchester.co.uk) today announced that it has advised its client, Nildram ("AccentUK Limited") one of the UK's leading broadband internet service providers, on its acquisition by PIPEX Communications plc, which was announced on August 9, 2004.

Nildram is an Internet Service Provider ("ISP") providing network application services and related products to businesses and broadband to both business and residential customers in the UK. As of the end of July 2004, Nildram had 35,000 broadband customers, of which an estimated 30% are business customers.

Westchester Associates has worked with and advised Nildram for several years prior to the completion of this transaction being announced today. Sean Stephenson, CEO of Nildram, stated, "having worked with Westchester for several years, I had become accustomed to their efficient and timely management of projects. Thus, when we decided to sell Nildram to PIPEX, our experience in this transaction was no exception. The timeframe from the start of the Sale process to the closing was an amazing five weeks. At all times during this accelerated process we were kept informed in a timely manner and we felt secure that our best interests were always being looked after by Westchester".

Nildram, under the leadership of Mr. Stephenson, has been a profitable and cash generative business. During the year ended 31, March 2004, Nildram's audited turnover was £14.1 million and audited EBITDA was £366,563. During the past 12 months, Nildram has grown substantially, benefiting from the increasing demand for broadband services. Total consideration paid by PIPEX for Nildram was £12.9 million in cash.

Stephenson commenting further on the transaction said, "the successful and valuable experience we enjoyed in our work with Westchester certainly leads me to recommend them to other companies, especially those of similar size and in the process of rapid growth".

About Nildram

Nildram has been consistently recognised as one of the UK's leading Broadband Service Providers in terms of Performance, Reliability and Customer Support*. Nildram is the Broadband Service Provider brand of AccentUK.

*Sources ADSL Guide ISP comparison, net4nowt and independent market research.

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