Covergence Delivers the CXC-50, Providing Complete VoIP Security and Reliability for Branch Offices and Small Businesses; Eclipse CXC-50 Provides ''Big Business'' VoIP at Small Business Prices.

MAYNARD, Mass. -- Covergence (FALL VON 2006 Booth #849), the first company to deliver a unified security and management solution for services based on the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), announced today the availability of the newest member of its Eclipse(TM) family of products, the Eclipse(TM) model CXC-50. The CXC-50 is the first solution to bring "business-grade" VoIP and real-time collaboration to small and medium business (SMB) and remote branch offices. For the first time, SMBs and branch offices will be able to take advantage of the benefits of voice over IP (VoIP) and IP-based communications and collaboration services, including comprehensive security and superior reliability, without the high prices and complexity associated with "big business" VoIP and IP networks.

More and more enterprises are discovering the value of VoIP and other real-time applications in connecting remote offices and employees together for increased productivity. As they migrate to these offerings, however, they need to securely connect their IP Private Branch eXchange (PBX) and other SIP-based systems - like Microsoft Office Live Communications Server - between sites or back to their IP service provider. Without a secure connection, these organizations could potentially open themselves up to intrusions and attacks - hacks, viruses, service issues and other forms of disruption that could lead to service and data theft and potentially take down their networks.

The CXC-50 meets this growing need by enabling "business-grade" SIP trunks (interfaces or gateways) to be deployed to a service provider's branch office and/or small business customers. The CXC-50 is deployed on the premises of the customer to protect the customer from intrusions and attacks, and to ensure secure access to remote SIP applications and services. Its low cost and small footprint, combined with an unparalleled feature set, make it the ideal solution for the delivery of business-grade hosted VoIP to the SMB market, and for enterprises to securely connect remote branch offices.

Additionally, the pairing of an Eclipse CXC-550 or CXC-350 at the service edge with a CXC-50 at the customer or branch edge delivers secure, efficient trunking between IP PBXes and a variety of other SIP devices. Authentication, encryption and validation - key to enabling the security and reliability required for business-grade VoIP - protect both signaling and media flows as they cross service provider networks. Quality of service, or QoS, is assured by a combination of bandwidth and QoS-based call admission control; QoS mapping, monitoring and marking; and QoS-based routing. Support for standard protocols ensures that Eclipse works with any SIP-enabled PBX or application server.

The Eclipse family of products is purpose-built to provide comprehensive security and control for VoIP and other SIP applications, with models 350 and 550 already in use today providing secure SIP trunks for large enterprises. And because all Eclipse models provide intrusion and attack prevention as well as support the standard for secure signaling (TLS) and the standard for secure media (SRTP), customers can deploy fully encrypted, validated and authenticated SIP trunks without any changes to their existing infrastructure.

"When we founded Covergence, we looked at the security needs of both service providers and enterprise customers to understand the core issues around VoIP and IP security and reliability," said Bob O'Neil, President and CEO of Covergence. "The Eclipse family of products has been architected from the beginning precisely to address those issues. Now, with the CXC-50, we are extending the abilities of the Eclipse out to the branch office and SMB markets to enable our service provider and large enterprise customers to maximize their investment in SIP-based applications and services across their entire organization, delivering greater value and functionality with the assurance of complete security and reliability of service."

The Eclipse CXC-50, available now from Covergence, will be on display at Fall VON 2006 (www.von.com) in Boston from Sept. 12-14, 2006. For more information on the product, including additional features and benefits, please visit www.covergence.com, or call [phone].

About Covergence

Covergence is the leader in scaling, securing and controlling VoIP and other real-time services based on the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). The Covergence Eclipse(TM) session manager is purpose-built to address the challenges of the access edge, giving users the secure, instant, and reliable access to SIP services they expect while giving organizations the complete control and visibility they require. For more information, visit www.covergence.com.