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1 Reports: SoftBank Telecom Leads Large Corporations in Japan in WAN Service Customer Satisfaction; Chubu Telecommunications Ranks Highest among Medium and Small Corporations TOKYO: 23 December 2008 SoftBank ranks highest among large corporations in customer satisfaction with wide area network (WAN) service, and Chubu Telecommunications ranks highest among medium/small corporations, according to the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2008 Japan WAN Service Customer Satisfaction Study. Now in its seventh year, the study measures customer satisfaction of nationwide telecommunications businesses with their WAN service, including IP-VPN and broadband Ethernet. Customer satisfaction is examined in two segments: large corporations (companies with 1,000 or more employees); and medium/small corporations (companies with less than 1,000 employees). In each segment, five factors measure overall satisfaction: service/quality; cost; setup process; responsiveness to system trouble; and responsiveness to sales contact. SoftBank Telecom ranks highest among the five companies evaluated in the large corporation segment with an index score of 759 on a 1,000-point scale. SoftBank performs particularly well in service/quality, responsiveness to system trouble, responsiveness of sales contact and setup process. KDDI follows SoftBank in the segment, while NTT Communications ranks third. The study finds that large corporation customers experience a greater incidence of major system problems, compared with customers in small and medium businesses. Additionally, among large corporations with core network systems, satisfaction with responsiveness to system trouble and service/quality declines considerably when major system trouble occurs dropping by an average of more than 40 points. The large decrease in satisfaction with responsiveness to system trouble and service/quality demonstrates the strong negative impact that system issues create for customers, said Hiroyasu Hirashima, manager of the solutions services group at J.D. Power Asia Pacific, Tokyo. Service providers that offer contracts with 24-hour/365 days-per-year repair service typically achieve much higher satisfaction scores than do providers with limited service hours. Minimizing system problems and reinforcing maintenance support and service are key in improving customer satisfaction, which, in turn, can enhance customer loyalty. Chubu Telecommunications ranks highest in the medium/small corporation segment, receiving an overall index score of 816 and performing particularly well across all five factors. SoftBank Telecom ranks second, followed by NTT East. The study finds that the percentage of medium/small corporations with a dedicated sales contact (83%) is particularly low when compared with large corporations (92%). Also, fewer onsite sales visits are made to medium/small corporations than to large corporations. However, 97 percent of Chubu Telecommunications customers report that they have a dedicated sales contact, and more than 70 percent indicate that onsite sales visits are their primary method of contact with their telecommunications provider. (Page 1 of 2)

2 Providing a dedicated sales contact and making frequent onsite visits are particularly valuable practices in satisfying customers, said Hirashima. Companies that provide detailed information such as an introduction of new services and systems, options for ensuring network security and comparative analysis of competitor products also perform particularly well in satisfying customers. Strengthening customer relationships through a dedicated sales contact and providing beneficial information with regard to telecommunications solutions are critical in improving satisfaction among medium and small corporation customers. The 2008 Japan WAN Service Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 359 companies in the large corporation segment and 2,014 responses from companies in the medium and small company segment. The survey was fielded in July About J.D. Power Asia Pacific J.D. Power Asia Pacific has offices in Tokyo, Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai and Bangkok that conduct customer satisfaction research and provide consulting services in the automotive, information technology and finance industries. Together, the offices bring the language of customer satisfaction to consumers and businesses in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. Information regarding J.D. Power Asia Pacific and its products can be accessed through the Internet at Media contact: cc-group@jdpower.co.jp. About J.D. Power and Associates Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. The company s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies. About The McGraw-Hill Companies: Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2008 were $6.4 billion. Additional information is available at Media Relations Contacts: Shizue Hidaka; J.D. Power Asia Pacific; Toranomon 45 MT Bldg. 8F; Toranomon; Minato-ku, Tokyo; Japan ; Phone ; cc-group@jdpower.co.jp. John Tews; Director, Media Relations; J.D. Power and Associates; 5435 Corporate Drive, Suite 300; Troy, MI, USA; ; media.relations@jdpa.com No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. # # # (Page 2 of 2) NOTE: Three charts follow.

3 Customer Satisfaction Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) SoftBank Telecom 759 KDDI 734 Large Corporation Segment Average 733 NTT Communications 730 NTT East 725 NTT West 701 Source: J.D. Power Asia Pacific as the source.

4 Customer Satisfaction Index Ranking (Based on a 1,000-point scale) Chubu Telecommunications 816 SoftBank Telecom 748 Medium/Small Corporation Segment Average 741 NTT East 737 KDDI 733 Fujitsu 732 NTT West 729 NTT Communications 728 Source: J.D. Power Asia Pacific as the source.

5 Factors Contributing to Overall Satisfaction Setup Process 14% Service/Quality Responsiveness of Sales Contact 17% Responsiveness to System Trouble 18% Cost Note: Percentages may not equal 100 due to rounding. Setup Process 15% Cost Responsiveness to System Trouble 15% Responsiveness of Sales Contact 19% Service/Quality 25% Source: J.D. Power Asia Pacific as the source.