HONG KONG - Hutchison Whampoa Limited ("HWL"), Motorola Inc., ("Motorola") and NTT Mobile Communications Network, Inc. ("NTT DoCoMo") announced today that NTT DoCoMo has agreed to acquire a 19% strategic equity interest in Hutchison Telephone Company Limited ("Hutchison" or the "Company"), the HWL-controlled Hong Kong mobile operator in which Motorola also currently holds a 30% equity interest.

NTT DoCoMo will acquire from HWL a 19% interest in the Company for a cash consideration of approximately US$ 410 million (HK$ 3,175 million). This transaction places an enterprise value of approximately US$2.6 billion (HK$ 20 billion) on the Company, which is currently the largest mobile operator in Hong Kong with over 1.2 million subscribers representing a market share of approximately 33%.

As part of this transaction, HWL will convert into equity certain shareholder loans it had made to the Company in the past. HWL's interest in the Company will rise from 70% to 74.9% as a result of this debt to equity conversion, resulting in a reduction in Motorola's interest in the Company from 30% to 25.1%. NTT DoCoMo will then acquire its 19% shareholding from HWL. HWL will retain a controlling interest of 55.9% in the Company, while Motorola's shareholding will remain at 25.1%.

HWL Group Managing Director Canning Fok said, "I am very proud to welcome NTT DoCoMo as our new strategic partner in the Hong Kong mobile business. NTT DoCoMo is one of the world's most innovative and technologically advanced mobile operators, and is a world leader in the development and implementation of mobile multimedia services. I believe that NTT DoCoMo's technology and vision, combined with Hutchison's local market presence and Motorola's strength in mobile communications technology, put Hutchison in an excellent position to drive the Hong Kong mobile communications industry forward. We believe that as we enter the next century, mobile phones will become a wider personal communications platform not only for voice telephony but also for data communications, Internet access and e-commerce transactions. In this respect, Hutchison could not have found a better strategic partner than NTT DoCoMo."

NTT DoCoMo, a 67%-owned subsidiary of the Japanese telecom group Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT), is currently the largest mobile operator in Japan with approximately 27 million subscribers representing a market share of 57%. In February 1999, NTT DoCoMo successfully launched "i-mode" which is essentially a mobile Internet platform that enables mobile users to access a wide variety of information, as well as send messages and conduct e-commerce transactions, over the Internet. Take-up rates for i-mode have been exceptional, with over 2.6 million users signing up for i-mode subscription in the 9-month period following the initial launch of the service.

It is in this context that Hutchison, with input from NTT DoCoMo, plans to expand its portfolio of value-added service offerings with a view to increasing mobile phone usage for non-voice applications in Hong Kong. Hutchison, which markets its cellular services under the "Orange" and "Xin Gan Xian" brands, already offers a wide range of value-added services to its subscribers, including mobile banking, securities trading and Internet access. Nevertheless, given the success NTT DoCoMo has achieved with i-mode, Hutchison believes that there remains substantial growth potential in value-added services to be realized within Hong Kong. With the benefit of NTT DoCoMo's experience and expertise, Hutchison intends to vigorously expand its technical and commercial capabilities in this area, and pursue a migration path towards third-generation mobile communication systems and services.

Commenting on the announcement, NTT DoCoMo President Dr. Keiji Tachikawa said, "We are very excited to be entering into this partnership with HWL and Motorola in Hong Kong. We see tremendous potential in Hong Kong not only for continued subscriber growth but also for rapid growth in demand for advanced value-added services. Indeed, we believe that Hong Kong, with its affluent and sophisticated consumer base, is fertile ground for future third-generation mobile services based on broadband wireless technology. In this regard, we are pleased to become a partner in Hutchison, which not only has the largest subscriber base in Hong Kong, but also has an extremely strong management team and a superb brand name. In addition, we are also pleased to team up with Motorola, one of the world's leaders in mobile communications technology. NTT DoCoMo has been very successful in introducing mobile multimedia services to consumers in Japan, and we look forward to replicating, if not exceeding, this success in Hong Kong together with Hutchison."

Motorola Corporate Vice President Robert Young added, "This transaction represents a significant coup for all parties involved. Motorola has been a partner with HWL in the Hong Kong mobile business for 14 years, and we are very proud of the successes the Company has achieved during this time. With NTT DoCoMo as a new partner, we are even more optimistic about the Company's prospects for continued success and market leadership in Hong Kong."