ADC Announces Industry's First Carrier-Grade IP Cable Telephony System for Cable Operators with Self-Provisioning and Capability for Tiered Services.

Business Editors & Technology Writers

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 11, 2001

ADC's Integrated Equipment, Software and Services Provides

EuroDOCSIS 1.1-Capable System with Features

Needed for IP Cable Telephony

ADC (Nasdaq:ADCT; www.adc.com), a leading global supplier of fiber optics, network equipment, software and integration services for broadband, multiservice networks, today announced the industry's first pre-integrated solution that provides the essential CMTS (cable modem termination system) capabilities needed for Voice over IP (VoIP) delivery by cable operators. The hardware and software solution enables cable operators to address critical business requirements to provide subscribers with access to multiple, simultaneous IP streams, including tiered levels of service. ADC's solution enables the support of new services, service level agreements (SLAs), quality of service (QoS), and IP address and subscriber management.

Voice over IP delivery is one of the critical challenges that cable operators face as the broadband evolution continues. By allowing different types of service and levels of quality (QoS) to co-exist on a single network, ADC's solution allows cable operators to dedicate bandwidth for voice, data and multicast traffic. This in turn, enables deployment of IP infrastructures that provide scalable IP routing and QoS guarantees along with comprehensive OSS and subscriber management solutions.

ADC's solution also helps cable operators to lower operating costs so that they can remain competitive. ADC's solution provides the industry's first scalable and manageable end-to-end solution for cable operators in the quest to support multiple services on a single network. ADC's solution includes:

-- Cuda(TM) 12000 IP Access Platform - The industry's leading next-generation
CMTS/Edge Router that provides advanced routing and quality of service
features.

-- Cuda Protocol Analyzer - The industry's only integrated DOCSIS management
solution that offers operators comprehensive non-invasive HFC network diagnosis
& troubleshooting capabilities.

-- FastFlow(R) Service Fulfilment Software - award winning provisioning, order
management, activation and IP management solution for all DOCSIS and
PacketCable-based networks.

-- Metrica(TM) Service Assurance Software - award winning and industry leading
network performance and service level monitoring tools.

"Cable operators face the daunting task of deploying hardware and software solutions from various sources to support the added challenges of providing multiple services at different QoS levels," said Mark Komanecky, vice president of marketing for ADC's Cable Systems Division. "ADC's hardware and software solutions provide cable operators with an open, reliable, and scalable solution that addresses the specific needs of open access applications."

Industry's Most Widely Deployed Next-Generation CMTS Solution Offers Advanced Routing and Quality of Service Support

The award-winning Cuda 12000 IP Access Switch is a 14-slot access & routing platform that aggregates high volumes of cable modem and other IP traffic for reliable transport over backbone data networks and the Internet. Based on ADC's unique MeshFlow(TM) architecture, the Cuda 12000 implements robust quality of service support via a combination of several custom application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and programmable ultra high performance network processors. The DOCSIS and EuroDOCSIS-qualified Cuda 12000 platform has been deployed by more than 30 cable operators worldwide and provides service providers with the most mature and robust next-generation CMTS/routing solution.

ADC has implemented policy-based routing in support of Open Access to augment the fully distributed packet processing capabilities of the Cuda 12000 platform. Unlike NAT (network address translation) and tunnelling-based approaches, policy-based routing solutions enable MSOs to support application-based QoS and virtual private networks (VPNs). Furthermore, unlike competing virtual router implementations, the ADC solution sets no inherent limits of the number of ISPs supported, helping cable operators to maximize their profitability and offer more choices to their subscriber base.

"To implement scalable, IP-optimized multi-ISP access it is essential that cable operators be able to distribute policy-based routing to the edge of their networks," said Michael Harris, president of broadband research firm Kinetic Strategies, Inc. "This requires integrated, high-performance CMTS and routing platforms capable of implementing QoS on a per ISP and application basis, both on the DOCSIS access network and metropolitan area network."

In addition, ADC's implementation of MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching) in the Cuda 12000, enables wire-speed per-flow traffic control and allows cable operators to control and properly monitor individual flows for multiple services from multiple ISPs across access, metropolitan, and core networks. This support of industry-standard MPLS augments the Cuda's existing DOCSIS 1.1 and DiffServ capabilities and enables the Cuda platform to manage thousands of unique IP flows at multiple service levels across multiple ISPs.

With per-flow control using MPLS, bandwidth can be dynamically allocated to individual traffic flows based on pre-determined service levels. Utilizing ADC's SpectraFlow(TM) QoS technology, the Cuda 12000 provides individual queues for each traffic flow and can guarantee minimum data rates and high levels of service availability with virtually no packet loss to ensure that operators and ISPs can meet SLA commitments. Furthermore, along with ADC's Metrica Service Assurance software, operators for the first time can confidently deploy IP services with SLAs to both residential and business subscribers.

ADC has also augmented the carrier-class routing functionality in the Cuda 12000 by adding support for the internal BGPv4 routing protocol. This complements the existing support of the RIP v1/2 and OSPF v2 protocols and in many cases eliminates the need for separate edge and WAN/MAN platforms. This also enables operators to implement peering points where convenient and to help them better scale their IP networks in multiple ISP environments.

Best-In-Class Subscriber Management & Provisioning Software

FastFlow service fulfilment software, a key component of ADC's Singularit.e solution suite, provides end-to-end service order management, flow-through provisioning and service activation, including user self-provisioning. This business and operational management suite leverages the world-class, industry proven FastFlow workflow architecture to deliver unsurpassed service order throughput and data integrity. Leveraging this workflow platform, FastFlow solutions for cable service providers integrate order management, inventory management, IP address management, and service activation capabilities to provide a robust and scalable service fulfilment solution for the next generation of cable broadband networks. FastFlow is the solution for all DOCSIS and PacketCable-based networks.

Industry's only Integrated DOCSIS Network Diagnosis Solution Enables Truly Scalable Support of Multiple ISP Networks

As cable companies aggressively deliver Internet service via multiple ISPs, MSOs must be equipped to quickly manage and diagnose network problems. The award-winning Cuda Protocol Analyzer, integrated into ADC's Cuda 12000 platform, captures and displays DOCSIS traffic on the HFC plant and enables network engineers to remotely access the Cuda chassis and use the product's numerous filtering and triggering features to isolate problems for a specific customer, a specific ISP, or the entire DOCSIS service in general. Furthermore, the Cuda Protocol Analyzer helps MSOs understand and isolate network availability issues, performance characteristics, and other metrics. This helps MSOs to effectively manage comprehensive tiered service offerings to residential and business subscribers while leveraging multiple ISP networks.

"In an open access environment, cable operators will need to have the ability to quickly isolate and resolve issues and guarantee high-bandwidth IP services across their HFC infrastructure, their internal IP networks, as well as the IP backbone connections to their ISP partners," said Komanecky. "As MSOs move to a multiple ISP environment, the Cuda Protocol Analyzer is designed to help enable cable operators to provide even higher levels of service, enhance customer satisfaction, and provide a more productive and consistent service environment."

Robust Network Performance and Service Level Monitoring to Enable True Service Level Agreements Across Multiple ISP Networks

Metrica service assurance software, a key component of the Singularit.e solution suite, is a complete and tailored network performance monitoring solution suite at the service level, the network level and the element level. Performance management is much more than just a network-level application. It is the foundation on which many of the service and business level applications are built. Metrica helps MSOs gain a better understanding of their:

-- customers' experience;

-- equipment behavior;

-- service providers experience;

-- service offerings;

-- and the interrelationships among the different aspects of

their business, in order to make more informed and timely

decisions.

Consequently for MSOs to offer service level agreements to their ISPs and subscribers a clear understanding is required of the underlying performance of the network.

ADC's Singularit.e suite of best-in-class Operations Support Systems (OSS) solutions for the mission critical areas of customer management, convergent billing, service fulfilment and service assurance is designed to automate and simplify the real-time management and web enabled view of customers, services and networks. Singularit.e's competence is in solving real business issues and it's applications offer proven functionality, flexibility, and scalability to over 200 of the world's most renowned communication service providers.

About ADC

ADC is The Broadband Company(TM). ADC's fiber optics, network equipment, software and integration services make broadband communications a reality worldwide by enabling communications service providers to deliver high-speed Internet, data, video and voice services to consumers and businesses. ADC (Nasdaq:ADCT) is a Fortune 500 company with sales into more than 130 countries. Learn more about ADC Telecommunications, Inc. at www.adc.com .