BT To Offer Wireless Voice and Data Networks for Home and Office.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 7, 1999--

The following announcement was made by BT regarding integration

of Home Wireless Networks' technology into new home

networking products from BT

BT is to introduce a range of wireless networking products enabling users to connect digital devices around the home or small office to the Internet or other online services.

The networks, which will be available early next year, have been developed in BT-funded research by US start-up Home Wireless Networks Inc. (HWN).

The system gives users a single, flexible integrated voice and data network at affordable prices. The modular design has four core components: a controller, data sockets, phone sockets and handsets. Connections between computers, peripherals and handsets are all wireless.

BT expects home networking to become a big growth sector, central to the emergence of the "Interactive Home", and predicts that more than 5 million UK consumers will start using home networks within the next five years. At the same time up to 10 million small businesses and teleworkers will find the flexibility and power of a wireless network an ideal fit for their expanding use of e-business. Wireless home networks will offer an ideal complement to BT's ISDN and ADSL services, enabling wireless distribution of broadband services to multiple users in the home or office.

The two companies have been working together since June 1998 to develop products for the European market in response to the dramatic growth in Internet services and e-commerce. Sales of the products in the first year are expected to exceed (pound)35 million ($50 million) in the UK.

HWN's US product line in North America combines the features of a wireless phone system with the functionality of a wireless LAN. As a part of the BT funded research, DECT and 802.11 compliant systems have been developed at HWN's UK facility, in Cambridge. At the heart of the system lies a wireless "Intelligent Gateway" to the global network, which will support all major international standards, including ISDN and ADSL.

BT will launch 2-line and a 4-line systems with wireless smart handsets, wireless phone sockets, and wireless data sockets. The systems are modular in design and feature expansion slots for the addition of a variety of additional products, which will include ISDN access, Voice Mail, and 802.11 wireless Ethernet. The first UK products will be on sale from BT early next year.

Nigel Stagg, general manager of BT consumer products, said: "In the USA, home networking has emerged as one of the new growth markets in telecommunications due to the increased need for shared Internet access and the ability to work more effectively."

John Taylor, president and CEO of Home Wireless Networks, said: "HWN is delighted to be BT's choice of technology partner to bring the benefits of home networking to the UK market."

Notes to Editors

1. Technical background - U.K. Products

DECT operates on the 1880 - 1900 MHz frequency range, and offers 10 frequency channels. It supports a data rate of 1.152Mbit/sec.

IEEE 802.11 is the global wireless Ethernet standard, which will support a data rate from 2Mbit/sec to 11Mbit/sec

The BT/HWN network supports a very wide range of industry standard protocols, as appropriate for a universal "Intelligent Gateway". These include: -- DECT (GAP and A/B2 profiles) -- Euro ISDN -- IEEE 802.11 (wireless Ethernet) -- IEEE 802.3 (10baseT fast Ethernet) -- TCP/IP -- UDP -- HTTP -- PPP 

As new international standards emerge (e.g. Bluetooth) they will be incorporated into the "Intelligent Gateway"

Network security

The DECT standard includes encryption and an access authentication control. Data is also scrambled before transmission across the packet switched data network. Similarly the 802.11 LAN deploys encryption and scrambling technology.

Avoidance of interference problems

The systems are suitable for multi-occupancy dwellings. The DECT radio uses dynamic channel selection to choose any 1 from 120 available channels (10x frequencies/12x timeslots). The radio is constantly looking for the best channel. Handover is seamless to the user. The 802.11 radio uses Spread Spectrum technology to achieve the same result.

Maximum size of network

Both the DECT and 802.11 radios will have a typical range of 300m line of sight, or 50-75m coverage in building. A single BT/HWN Controller can support up to 16 wireless devices, of which up to 12 can be "on-air" (i.e.talking, sending or receiving) at any one time. The 802.11 wireless Ethernet LAN module will initially be able to support up to 64 wireless devices.

2. Technical background - North American Products

The North American products utilize the unlicensed 900MHz (902-928 MHz) and 2.4GHz bands for voice and data communications. The products are certified digital spread spectrum by the FCC.

IEEE 802.11 is the global wireless Ethernet standard, which will support a data rate from 2Mbit/sec to 11Mbit/sec.

The HWN network supports a very wide range of industry standard protocols, as appropriate for a universal "Intelligent Gateway". These include: -- IEEE 802.11 (wireless Ethernet) -- IEEE 802.3 (10baseT fast Ethernet) -- TCP/IP -- UDP -- PPP

As new international standards emerge (e.g. Bluetooth) they will be incorporated into the "Intelligent Gateway"

Network security

The 900MHz wireless network uses digital spread spectrum and HWN-proprietary techniques for ensuring security of both voice and data transmissions. Similarly, the 802.11 LAN deploys encryption and scrambling technology.

Avoidance of interference problems

The systems are suitable for multi-occupancy dwellings. The HWN spread spectrum radio uses dynamic channel selection and monitoring to automatically choose 1 of 37 available frequency channels. The radio is constantly looking for the best channel, and will provide seamless handover to a new channel for the user. The 802.11 radio uses Spread Spectrum technology to achieve the same result.

Maximum size of network

The HWN radio has a line-of-sight range of up to 1,500 feet, or 200 - 500 feet in buildings depending on the type of construction. A single HWN Controller can support up to 16 wireless devices. The 802.11 wireless Ethernet LAN module will initially be able to support up to 64 wireless devices.

3. BT

BT is one of the world's leading providers of telecommunications services. With a market capitalization of more than 60 billion pounds sterling, it is one of the largest private sector companies in Europe. Its principal activity is the supply of local, long distance and international telecommunications services and equipment in the UK, serving 28 million exchange lines. International direct-dialled telephone service is available to more than 200 countries and other overseas territories -- covering 99 per cent of the world's 800 million telephones. BT is expanding its presence overseas rapidly and has operations in more than 30 countries worldwide, with joint ventures in the Republic of Ireland, France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, India and Latin America. Inquiries about this news release can be made to the BT corporate newsroom on its 24-hour number: [phone]. All corporate news releases can be accessed at our web site: http://www.bt.com.

4. Home Wireless Networks (HWN)

Home Wireless Networks, Inc. is a private company headquartered in Atlanta, GA, USA, with a European office located in Cambridge, UK. Incorporated in 1996, the company is backed by financial investment from Lucent Technologies, Grotech Capital Group, Alliance Technology Ventures and Klaus Krone of Germany. For more information on Home Wireless Networks' communications systems, visit www.homewireless.com. PR contacts for Home Wireless Networks Inc. are:

Vanessa Lindberg Barbara Stafford Ketchum Crescent Home Wireless Networks [phone] ext 188 [phone] [phone] fax [phone] fax [e-mail] [e-mail]

Dee Gibbs Liberty Communications 44 1753 655 426

44 1753 655 873 fax [e-mail]