CopperCom Awarded Product of the Year For Local Exchange Softswitch System.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 4, 2001

Communications Solutions Magazine Honors Company for Innovation in the

Next-Generation Networks/Services Category

CopperCom(TM), the company that is Creating Voice Services over Broadband, today announced that it was awarded the 2000 Softswitch Product of the Year Award by Communication Solutions(TM) Magazine. The CopperCom Local Exchange Softswitch System (LeXSS) was honored as an innovative product that furthered voice/data covergence, and was specifically recognized as a winner in the publication's next-generation networks/services category. Last October, CopperCom announced general availability of the LeXSS, the industry's first and only softswitch system that combines both broadband access and a complete softswitch architecture within a single platform to deliver innovative voice services for the local exchange.

"As the industry matures, we're finding more than just products and services on the market -- entire solutions are being offered," said TMC president and group publisher Rich Tehrani. "Communications Solutions(TM) Magazine initiated the Product of the Year award program to help our readers sort through the vast proliferation of new products and services in the marketplace. The Product of the Year award, selected by the editors of Communications Solutions(TM) and the engineers of TMC Labs(TM), is given to those select products, such as CopperCom's Local Exchange Softswitch System, that deserve the attention of forward-thinking organizations looking for best-of-breed solutions. We are pleased to honor the Product of the Year winners, as they lay the groundwork for the next-generation of communications solutions."

"We're thrilled to receive the publication's most renowned product honor for CopperCom's softswitch system," said Cynthia Ringo, CopperCom CEO. "With more than 20 customers in North America alone deploying the LeXSS, CopperCom is extremely pleased with the industry's response, and looks forward to continue its charter in developing groundbreaking voice solutions for the local exchange."

About Communication Solutions Magazine

Communication Solutions Magazine, formerly CTI Magazine, is a monthly magazine focused specifically on data and voice communications, as well as the related industry trends and developments in the telecommunications segment. The publication targets service providers, developers, system integrators, enterprise decision-makers, resellers, distributors/wholesalers and OEMs. Communications Solutions Magazine is known for showcasing leading-edge products and services that drive this competitive marketplace -- ultimately connecting buyers and sellers.

About the LeXSS

The CopperCom LeXSS is the industry's first integrated softswitch system that is uniquely architected to deliver innovative local exchange services to business and residential markets combining a softswitch architecture and broadband access within a single platform. As the only true end-to-end softswitch system that features an advanced service creation environment to build compelling voice and data services, the LeXSS offers subscribers a revolutionary tool for creating customizable features in real-time via a web interface. Telecommunications carriers such as CLECs, ILECs, ISPs, Greenfields and BLECs (MDU/MTU) can dramatically lower network costs, create enhanced, high-margin services and generate new revenues as they migrate to packet networks.

The LeXSS is comprised of three primary elements: 1) softswitch -- including call control, calling features and a service creation environment 2) switching and media conversion platform 3) provisioning and management system -- all of which appear to the service provider network as a single system. With the LeXSS, service providers can reach subscribers through broadband or circuit access, connecting them to the PSTN or a packet core network.

About CopperCom

CopperCom, the company that is Creating Voice Services over Broadband, designs and markets a full suite of telecommunications products for the access network -- delivering high-speed data and up to 24 voice lines simultaneously over a single, copper wire. CopperCom has transformed today's business model for service providers by uniquely combining a low-cost switching platform with an industry-leading transport architecture -- enabling a natural migration to a full packet telephone network while preserving critical investments. CopperCom is the only company that offers a full end-to-end solution that combines broadband access with a low-cost softswitch and the rich feature creation environment for local telephony -- giving service providers a new way to differentiate and bundle innovative services for subscribers in the highly profitable residential and small business markets. Founded in 1997, CopperCom is a privately held, Silicon Valley-based company funded by leading venture partners, including Advent International, Charlie Bass, Hambrecht and Quist, Morgan Stanley, Technology Crossover Ventures and The VMS Group (formerly AT&T Ventures). For additional information, CopperCom can be reached at 408/987-8500, or on the Internet at www.coppercom.com.

Note to Editors: CopperCom, LeXSS and Creating Voice Services over Broadband are trademarks of CopperCom Inc. Other trademarks appearing in this document are the property of their respective owners.