Cable & Wireless HKT Chooses Unisphere Solutions to Provide Scalable Broadband DSL Services; Edge Routing Switch Enables CWHKT to Deploy Large Scale DSL Services.

Business/Technology Editors

HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 6, 2000

Unisphere Solutions, a leading provider of converged networking solutions and services for Internet service providers and carriers, announced today that Cable & Wireless Hong Kong Telecom (CWHKT) has deployed Unisphere's Edge Routing Switch (ERX). The deployment supports scalable aggregation of high-speed Internet connections, and improves and expands CWHKT existing Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) business and consumer services.

With the largest installed base of broadband customers in Asia and services available to more than 90 percent of Hong Kong residences, CWHKT requires a superior, scalable platform, and guaranteed quality of service (QoS). As a carrier class solution for delivery of business critical applications, Unisphere's ERX supports CWHKT's integration of broadband services into a single platform, and guarantees wire-speed IP packet forwarding with complete access control, authentication and auditing features.

"Finding a broadband solution that would scale to hundreds of thousands of users in our network was a prime concern of ours," said Carlson Chu, manager of networking & technologies, CWHKT. "Unisphere's ERX was clearly able to meet our customers' high performance demands. Of equal significance, the ERX will support us in rolling out new services quickly and cost-effectively, yet still leveraging our previous investments made in technology and equipment infrastructures."

"Traditional routing vendors have not been able to meet the requirements of delivering serious broadband services with service level agreements (SLAs). Unisphere's ERX is based on a next-generation architecture that allows for superior wire-speed performance, density and a reliability only previously experienced with a voice network," said Adam Judd, vice president, Asia Pacific, Unisphere Solutions. "The deployment of the ERX will allow CWHKT to clearly differentiate their services within Hong Kong, and as the new Internet edge begins to take shape, innovative service providers like CWHKT will lead the way."

About the ERX

Unisphere Solutions' ERX system delivers the next-generation IP infrastructure that allows world-class service providers to deploy high-speed Internet connections and value-added IP services to both businesses and consumers. The ERX product family provides wire-speed performance on all interfaces, sophisticated routing capabilities, carrier-class reliability and unparalleled density, and offers a number of new revenue-generating service policies such as IP Quality of Service (QoS), Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

Unisphere's ERX family includes two models - the high capacity ERX-1400 and the mid-range ERX-700. The ERX-1400 provides scalable capacity for thousands of users, making it ideal for service providers that operate high capacity points of presence (PoPs). Its modular, 14-slot chassis features a wide range of interface options, including T1/E1, T3/E3, OC3/STM-1, OC12/STM-4, and Fast/Gigabit Ethernet. The ERX-700, designed for applications that require mid-range capacity, has the same features and performance of the ERX-1400 in a more economical 7-slot package.

About Unisphere Solutions, Inc.

Unisphere Solutions, Inc., based in Chelmsford, Mass., designs, markets and supports converged network ready solutions used to construct telecommunications services for the next millennium. Founded in March 1999, Unisphere Solutions is a product of the combined assets of the internationally recognized Siemens and the acquisition of three Massachusetts companies - Argon Networks, Castle Networks and Redstone Communications. The company brings together the know-how of more than 500 people, including global assets from Siemens Information and Communication Networks Group, to deliver end-to-end solutions for converged networks. More information on Unisphere Solutions can be found on the Internet at www.unispheresolutions.com.

About Cable & Wireless HKT 

Cable & Wireless HKT, a Cable & Wireless company, is Hong Kong's major full-service communications provider, marketing a full array of quality voice and data telecommunication services backed by a state-of-the-art, fully digital fibre-optic network. Services include basic telephony, mobile telephony, international calls, specialized fax and data products, value-added services, Internet access, multimedia services, satellite links and telecommunications equipment and systems.

The outstanding quality of Cable & Wireless HKT's services was recognised in the global award of "Most Competitive Local or National Carrier" conferred in the Financial Times Global Telecommunications Awards in October 1999. Additionally, in a survey conducted by CFO Asia in November 1999, Cable & Wireless HKT was named as the number one company in Asia based on the wealth it has created for shareholders.

Apart from owning and operating Asia's largest commercial teleport, Cable & Wireless HKT is a pioneer in a wide range of communications solutions, such as launching the world's first fully digitized urban network, the world's first fibre-optic cable linking China, and the world's first interactive television services.

With customers in 70 countries, Cable & Wireless is a major global telecommunications business with revenue of around (pound)8 billion in the year ended March 1999 and over 50,000 employees. Its businesses around the world offer a range of services spanning broadband data and Internet services, fixed and mobile voice, as well as interactive entertainment and information. Cable & Wireless' priority for expansion is the fast growing market of data and IP (Internet Protocol) services for business customers. Since November 1998, it has announced major investments in advanced networks in the US and Europe, the restructuring of Cable & Wireless Communications in the UK and has acquired full control of Cable & Wireless IDC in Japan to support this strategy. Cable & Wireless now holds a unique position in terms of global coverage and services to business customers.

Unisphere Solutions is a trademark of Unisphere Solutions Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.