Investor Relations

CALIFORNIA, Oct. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- UTStarcom Holdings Corp. ("UTStarcom" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: UTSI), a leading provider of broadband equipment and solutions, today announced that it has recently won a Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) and Optical Cross-Connect (OXC) network equipment and installation contract from Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd. ("Chunghwa"), a leading integrated telecommunications service provider in Taiwan.  Specifically, UTStarcom will provide its transport network solution NetRing® 40K products to deliver high-speed broadband services to Chunghwa subscribers across Taiwan beginning in the first quarter of 2013.

"We are very pleased to be able to provide additional value to Chunghwa, a long-standing customer," said William Wong, Chief Executive Officer of UTStarcom. "This agreement for additional products and services reaffirms our focus on IP-based services and key infrastructure products in the Asia Pacific market.  Taiwan is an important market for UTStarcom, and we will continue to leverage our success and high customer satisfaction in neighboring markets like Japan as we look to expand our presence in Taiwan and across the region more broadly.  We believe this expanded partnership with Chunghwa will help us develop additional customer relationships in the Asia Pacific region."

UTStarcom became an optical transport equipment supplier for Chunghwa in 2004 and has continued to improve the quality and stability of NetRing series products for Chunghwa annually.  In October 2011, UTStarcom won multi-service transfer platform (MSTP) and first packet transport network (PTN) commercial trial contract from Chunghwa, helping the service provider to better support its broadband service in Taiwan.

The NetRing® 40K Platform is a versatile, next-generation optical platform designed to simplify service provider networks by combining functions of several different legacy products into a single platform. Capable of supporting up to 40G interfaces, this platform can dramatically reduce capital and operational expenses for service providers.

About UTStarcom Holdings Corp.

UTStarcom is a leading provider of broadband equipment and solutions for cable and telecom operators. The Company sells its solutions to operators in both emerging and established telecommunications and cable markets around the world. UTStarcom enables its customers to rapidly deploy revenue-generating access services using their existing infrastructure, while providing a migration path to cost-efficient, end-to-end IP networks.

UTStarcom was founded in 1991 and listed on the NASDAQ in 2000. With a new management team in 2011, the Company deployed a revamped growth strategy that concentrates on providing media operation support services. UTStarcom has its operational headquarters in Beijing, China and research and development operations in China and India. For more information about UTStarcom, visit the Company's Web site at http://www.utstar.com.

About Chunghwa Telecom Co., Ltd.

Chunghwa Telecom is the leading telecom service provider in Taiwan.  Chunghwa Telecom provides fixed line services, mobile services and Internet and data services to residential and business customers in Taiwan.  Further information about Chunghwa Telecom may be found on the Internet at www.cht.com.tw.

Safe Harbor Statement

This release includes forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the Company's ability to perform its contractual obligations under the contract with Chunghwa, expectations regarding expansion of its presence in the Asia Pacific region and expectations regarding additional customer relationships.  These statements are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. These include risks and uncertainties regarding the Company's ability to perform its contractual obligations, realize the anticipated benefits of the contract, respond to economic issues in the identified geographic markets, and anticipate changes in customer acceptance and demand, as well as risk factors identified in its latest Annual Report on Form 20-F and Current Reports on Form 6-K, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company is in a period of transition and the conduct of its business is exposed to additional risks as a result. All forward-looking statements included in this release are based upon information available to the Company as of the date of this release, which may change, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statement.

Contacts:

UTStarcom Holdings Corp.
Ms. Jing Ou-Yang
+86-10-8520-5153
jouyang@utstar.com

FTI Consulting, Inc.
Mr. Eric Boyriven (New York)
+212-850-5671
Eric.Boyriven@fticonsulting.com   

Ms. May Shen (Beijing)
+86-10-8591-1951
May.Shen@fticonsulting.com

Mr. Daniel DelRe (Hong Kong)
+852-3768-4547
Daniel.DelRe@fticonsulting.com

SOURCE UTStarcom, Inc.