Alcatel Presents the ADSL 'Digital Loop Carrier' Solution at Networld+Interop; New DLC Product and Third-Generation DSLAM Will Greatly Expand Carriers' ADSL Service Areas.

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 4, 1998--Alcatel is introducing a new product here that will make it easier for service providers to deliver the "hi-speed" benefits of ADSL (asymmetrical digital subscriber line) to millions of businesses and residences served by digital loop carriers.

The Alcatel Mini-RAM (remote access multiplexer) fits inside all digital loop carrier (DLC) cabinets to extend greatly the ADSL service area.

This breakthrough represents a true "universal solution," as service providers can install the Mini-RAM in the cramped spaces of any DLC cabinet. The Mini-RAM is a self-contained unit made to work in any cabinet, regardless of the brand or make of the existing equipment. The Mini-RAM uses the same interface cards as the full-sized central office 1000 ADSL DSLAM (DSL access multiplexer), but is temperature hardened and occupies only two rack spaces. It will support up to eight subscriber lines and can be provisioned to be either splitterless UDSL (universal) or full-speed ADSL with the same equipment.

"The Mini-RAM effectively extends the reach of ADSL to an infinite distance," said Steve Makgill, Director of Product Line Management for ADSL at Alcatel. "This way everyone can take advantage of the blazing speed of ADSL for Internet access, Virtual Private Networks (VPN), or Video on Demand. The Mini-RAM uses the same line cards as our Central Office DSLAM, can be provisioned in-band, and is totally compliant with all applicable standards."

"Instead of modifying our ADSL offering to fit in one vendor's DLC shelf, we chose to make it self contained. Service providers can deploy the same ADSL hardware anywhere, regardless of the existing DLC equipment. This reduces the overall cost of deploying and managing an ADSL service significantly," continued Makgill.

Alcatel's DLC approach means that carriers do not have to construct expensive new cabinets and can introduce ADSL on an incremental basis to better match infrastructure costs to paying data customers, all without forfeiting the ability to upgrade to larger systems in a hurry. In addition to the already available OC3c and DS3 network interfaces, service providers can choose a new T1 IMA card that uses Inverse Multiplexing technology to pass network traffic on up to four T1 lines using ATM. This interface leverages existing DLC equipment and provides the most efficient method of providing high-speed access to a small number of users.

Alcatel complements the mini-RAM strategy with the introduction of its third-generation 1000 ADSL DSLAM, which makes it possible for operators to offer both full-rate ADSL and splitterless, "plug and play" U (universal) DSL with the same central office equipment at the same time. Alcatel's strategy, therefore, represents an effective "one-two" punch for service providers seeking to deliver more ADSL options.

UDSL is an evolving standard widely supported by the computer industry and officially championed by the Universal ADSL Working Group (UAWG). By eliminating the need for a telephone line splitter, UDSL simplifies and reduces the costs of installation. Both UDSL and ADSL allow simultaneous voice and data traffic over the same phone line, but the higher speed ADSL requires a POTS splitter to filter and separate the two. Two of Alcatel's customers have UDSL (also called ADSL "lite") installed in their labs.

Alcatel 1000 ADSL uses industry-standard DMT (Discrete Multi Tone) line modulation and is fully-compliant with NEBS and ANSI T1.413 Issue 2 standards. Alcatel's open architecture for customer premise equipment, high density DSLAM central office offering, Universal DLC Mini-RAM, and ATM transport have helped make it the choice of many major carriers world wide.

The Alcatel 1000 ADSL product family, compatible with all DMT standard-compliant (T1.413) equipment, features full-rate, "lite" and "splitterless" products. Alcatel's ADSL products are based on its own ADSL chipset, which is being made available for licensing and sale to other industry partners in order to speed up the availability of ADSL products. This development helps ensure mass-market availability of high-speed Internet access based on a single, standardized ADSL technology.

In recent months, Alcatel has delivered and installed its ADSL equipment at Ameritech, BellSouth, Pacific Bell and Southwestern Bell in the United States; Singapore Telecom; Bell Canada; and Belgacom, British Telecom, Deutsche Telekom, France Telecom, Telefonica (Spain), and Telia (Sweden) in Europe. Alcatel and Intel demonstrated recently an ADSL modem prototype that connects to a personal computer's Universal Serial Bus (USB). Microsoft recently demonstrated advanced applications over Alcatel's ADSL at the WinHec conference.

Alcatel designs, manufactures, and markets complete telecommunications systems. Activities include fixed switching networks, transmission systems, access systems, mobile communications infrastructure, business networking, submarine cable networks, as well as radio communications, space, and defense systems. With operations in over 130 countries, Alcatel is a leading-edge supplier in the majority of its businesses. In 1997, the Telecom segment of Alcatel Alsthom registered total sales of $14.2 billion (FF 82.9 billion). For more information, visit Alcatel via the web at www.alcatel.com or www.ans.alcatel.com (U.S. site).

Contact for Alcatel Alsthom Investor Relations (Paris) -- Charlotte Laurent-Ottomane, tel. [phone], or E-mail: [e-mail], or fax [phone].

U.K. media contact: Barrington Lloyd International, tel. [phone], or E-mail: [e-mail].

CONTACT: Alcatel, Richardson

Mark Burnworth, 972/996-5986

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