Avici Systems Proves Interoperability of Its MPLS Capabilities for IP Traffic Engineering and Virtual Private Networks.

Business/Technology Editors

N. BILLERICA, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 18, 2001

Enables Carriers to Increase Network Efficiency and Offer

Differentiated IP Services in Multi-Vendor Environment

Avici Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: AVCI), a leading provider of scalable core routing solutions for intelligent IP-over-optical networks, today announced the successful completion of ongoing interoperability tests of its TSR(R) scalable core router's Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) capabilities at George Mason University's (GMU) Advanced Internet Lab. The tests validated the interoperability of Avici's MPLS offerings which enable carriers to use MPLS traffic engineering and Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to roll out revenue generating, differentiated IP services.

The GMU interoperability tests focused on MPLS Label Distribution Protocol (LDP) and Resource Reservation Protocol for Traffic Engineering (RSVP-TE), which enable carriers to increase network efficiency through the use of VPNs and traffic engineering across an entire multi-vendor network. The TSR is the industry's most scalable MPLS core offering, supporting up to 15,000 tunnels as a midpoint router and up to eight classes of service per tunnel for differentiated service offerings, compared with competing products which typically only support hundreds of MPLS tunnels and four classes of service.

"MPLS LDP and RSVP-TE protocols are extremely important to carriers for the creation of a multi-service backbone," said Chris Nicoll, vice president of telecom infrastructure at industry analyst firm Current Analysis. "Avici continues to demonstrate leading-edge MPLS solutions to the marketplace, enabling service providers to unlock the power of a converged core network to carry legacy and new IP services."

"The Advanced Internet Lab provides a unique opportunity for Avici to collaborate with carriers and other vendors to prove next-generation networking protocols and tailor our product offerings to fit carrier requirements," said Chris Gunner, vice president of engineering at Avici. "Avici is committed to testing and demonstrating interoperability between the TSR and other leading-edge suppliers, which we continue to do at GMU."

Avici successfully completed LDP testing of the following features: Basic Discovery; Extended Discovery; LDP Session Establishment; Address Handling; Label Release Message; Label Withdraw Message; LSP Establishment; LSP Hierarchy-LDP over RSVP-TE tunnel. Avici also expanded its MPLS-TE testing with additional edge routers and tested the following features: Tunnel Establishment; LSP Reroute-Planned; Precedence/Preemption; Constraint Based Routing; and Loop Detection.

In addition to features demonstrated at GMU, Avici's Composite Links technology, which enables customers to dynamically aggregate up to 16 OC-192c interfaces to create 160 Gbps connections between routers, improves on LDP by providing higher levels of resiliency and link aggregation, enabling faster service provisioning. Composite Links has been proven to enable MPLS tunnels to be rerouted in as few as 15 milliseconds, significantly reducing network downtime.

About George Mason University 

The purpose of George Mason's Advanced Internet Lab is to conduct research on high-performance, large-bandwidth, Internet core networks. In addition to the initial support provided by UUNET, a WorldCom company, the lab is supported by France Telecom, Deutsche Telekom, Concert, Cable & Wireless, NTT as service providers; Alcatel, Avici Systems, Cisco Systems, Ericsson, Foundry Networks, Juniper Networks, Marconi, Nortel Networks, Ocular Networks, Hyperchip, Unisphere Networks as network equipment suppliers; and Agilent Technologies, Spirent Communications (Adtech and Netcom Systems) and Ixia Communications as test equipment suppliers.

For more information about the Advanced Internet Lab visit the web site at http://www.ail.gmu.edu.

About Avici Systems

Avici Systems Inc., headquartered in North Billerica, Mass., is a developer of next-generation Internet backbone platforms that optimize and drive creation of all-optical "speed-of-light" networks. Designed to bring packet intelligence to the core of optical networks, Avici's technologies offer superior scalability, resiliency and port density enabling just-in-time bandwidth provisioning, high reliability and the quality of service needed for carriers and ISPs to support mission-critical applications of the future. Visit Avici's World Wide Web site at http://www.avici.com.

Avici and TSR are registered trademarks of Avici Systems Inc.

This release contains information about Avici's future expectations, plans, and prospects that constitute forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. When used in this press release, the words "will be" and other similar expressions are intended to identify such forward looking statements.

Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, market acceptance of Avici products, services and enhancements, customer purchasing patterns and commitments, development of the market place, product development and enhancement, intensity of competition of other vendors, technological changes and other risks set forth in Avici's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.