Avici Systems and Telecom Italia Lab Demonstrate Integrated IP/Optical Network Solutions.

NORTH BILLERICA, Mass. -- Open Standards IP/Optical Interworking Used to Accelerate Rollout of Advanced Optical Services

Avici Systems (NASDAQ: AVCI), today announced that Telecom Italia Lab, the Research Center of Telecom Italia Group, has integrated the Avici Systems SSR(TM) carrier class routing platform in its hybrid IP/optical network test bed that leverages open standards signaling across the optical and IP domains. Telecom Italia Lab is building an advanced multi-layer network based on IP/MPLS and optical technologies to evaluate the advantages of an intelligent architecture utilizing standards-based interworking between the optical transport network and client devices (IP routers). Leveraging the unified IP/Optical control plane, this IP/optical test bed will be used to evaluate future upgrades to European research infrastructures in order to support the highly demanding applications of the European research community.

"Standards-based signaling between the IP and optical layer is an important step toward realizing Telecom Italia's vision of the intelligent optical Internet," said Carlo Cavazzoni, Project Leader, Network Innovation/Optical Network & Planning at Telecom Italia Lab. "We envision a seamless, interoperable network of high-capacity routers and optical switches that can be used to support cost-effective broadband connectivity and new adaptive optical services. We are very pleased to be working with Avici Systems to implement a flexible and reliable network that leverages state-of-the-art technology to meet the requirements of the most demanding applications."

Avici is the first router vendor to leverage the open standards to enable carriers to signal between the IP and optical domains. This capability enables service providers to drive down operations costs, improve network restoration and protection and broaden their future service offerings. Utilizing Avici's SSR platform with UNI signaling, Telecom Italia Lab can evaluate the benefits of an intelligent optical core--a core that is based upon a reliable carrier-grade infrastructure that allows routers to flexibly request bandwidth from the optical network to accommodate rapid fluctuations in traffic, and provides self-healing restoration capabilities at the IP and optical layer to circumvent network failures. Telecom Italia Lab's integrated research network will be used to address interoperability issues between different network domains, accelerate the deployment of broadband services and enable end-to-end provisioning of real-time adaptive optical services across heterogeneous network environments.

"Network operators consider interoperability between the IP and transmission networks critical to reducing costs while improving protection and restoration capabilities," said Dr. Chris Gunner, Sr. Vice President of Research and Development at Avici. "Telecom Italia, with its Research Center, is at the forefront of this important area of development and we are honored to be participating in this valuable initiative."

Avici's high performance carrier class routing platforms provide carriers with a solid foundation for supporting the next generation of IP growth from escalating broadband usage and new services as well as the convergence of legacy services to IP. Avici has distinguished itself in the industry through a consistent focus on carrier-class routing that supports customer's near-term and long-term bandwidth and service requirements. Avici routers are the only solution with proven in-service scalability to a multi-chassis system in an operational network and the first carrier-class high-availability solution proven to deliver 99.999% system availability in a single router to support mission critical and new real-time services across the IP network.

About Avici Systems

Avici Systems Inc., headquartered in North Billerica, Mass., is a leading provider of purpose-built carrier-class routing solutions for the Internet. Avici's family of routers is designed to meet carrier requirements for the highest scalability, reliability and network availability, while lowering the total cost of building and operating their networks. The company's routing systems provide new IP solutions to some of the world's leading service providers. For more information, please visit us at www.avici.com.

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 word "will", "expected" 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.