Paris, London and The Hague – The Carlyle Group, Providence Equity Partners and GMT Communications Partners (the "Sponsors") today announced that they have signed a definitive agreement with Cinven and Warburg Pincus under which Cinven and Warburg Pincus will acquire Casema for €2.1 billion.

Casema is a leading provider of cable, Internet and telephony services to residential and business customers in the Netherlands. The Company is the third largest cable operator in the country, passing 1.5 million homes. The Company’s current customer base represents approximately 21% of all Dutch households.

The Sponsors acquired Casema in January 2003 from France Telecom, with Providence and Carlyle each owning 46% of the Company and GMT 8%. Under the ownership of the Sponsors and management of Chief Executive Officer Jos Molenkamp who joined shortly after the acquisition, Casema invested in excess of €250 million in its network and infrastructure. Casema has been transformed from a utility-like analog television provider into the leading "triple play" operator in the Netherlands, offering digital television, broadband internet and telephony to the Dutch consumers. As of June 30, 2006, the Company had 1.3 million television subscribers (of which 112,000 subscribed to digital packages), 400,000 broadband internet and 136,000 telephony subscribers. Additionally, Casema has achieved revenue growth of 10% annually since 2002 and approximately doubled EBITDA, while increasing its headcount to approximately 1,050 from 750 employees at the end of 2002.

Benoît Colas, Managing Director at Carlyle said: "We are very pleased with our investment in Casema. This success is due to the strengths of the Casema business and the great work done by management since the acquisition. We are also very proud of having accompanied the Company through this major transformation into one of the leading triple-play operators in Europe."

Jörg Mohaupt, Managing Director at Providence said: "Thanks to the leadership of Jos and his team, the hard work of our partners, and the dedication of all Casema employees, we have added significant value to the company over the past three years and helped Casema grow, enhance its product offerings and customer service, and improve its financial position. We are confident that Casema has a bright future with its new partners."

Jos Molenkamp, CEO of Casema said: "Casema has established itself as a strong competitor with an exceptional product offering, a large and sophisticated customer base, and one of the most reliable broadband networks. We are pleased with the Company’s success in delivering excellent service to all of our customers."

The transaction, which is expected to close in the second half of 2006, is subject to regulatory approvals.

Goldman Sachs International acted as sole financial advisor to the Sponsors.

About Casema
With over 30 years of experience and around 1.3 million subscribers, Casema is one of the Netherlands' leading cable operators. The Casema network is located mainly in the central and southwestern parts of the Netherlands and serves such cities as The Hague, Utrecht and Breda. Casema has rapidly developed from cable television operator to full service provider, offering an extensive package of electronic services via the cable. Visit www.casema.nl for additional information.