Data Connection Announces DC-VoicePacket Pre-Integrated Hardware and Software Voice Gateway Platform.

Business Editors/High Tech Writers

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 28, 2000

DC-VoicePacket hardware and software platform for VoDSL, VoCable

and backbone voice trunking helps OEMs cut development cycles and

protect investments

Data Connection Limited (DCL) today announced DC-VoicePacket, a pre-integrated hardware and software platform that combines DCL's existing highly successful ATM, SS7 and VoIP communications software products with industry leading cPCI hardware to provide a highly scalable, fault-tolerant platform for OEMs building Voice-over-DSL (VoDSL), Voice-over-Cable (VoCable) and backbone voice trunking gateways.

The DC-VoicePacket family consists of a series of &uot;jump start&uot; packages that address the following market segments.

-- DC-VoicePacket for DSL is a voice gateway that directly interconnects DSL access networks to the PSTN.

-- DC-VoicePacket for Cable is a voice gateway that directly interconnects cable access networks to the PSTN.

-- DC-VoicePacket for Trunking is a Class 4 (Tandem) switch replacement that interconnects PSTN SS7 / TDM networks to backbone ATM and IP packet networks.

A key feature of all three DC-VoicePacket packages is that they do not require Service Providers to invest in expensive Class 5 (Central Office) or Class 4 (Tandem) PSTN switches. This, plus the ease of deploying new revenue generating services on DC-VoicePacket based platforms, makes DC-VoicePacket significantly more attractive than current voice gateway solutions - and allow OEMs to offer Service Providers extremely cost-effective products.

By using the DC-VoicePacket platform, OEMs avoid having to do basic protocol stack and/or hardware integration, dramatically reduce their integration and test burden, and can concentrate on product differentiation and value added services - and get a better product to market quicker.

&uot;We have a superb reputation for delivering OEMs the highest quality communications software products in the industry&uot; said Phil McConnell, Managing Director of Data Connection. &uot;But our OEMs customers increasingly want us to provide pre-integrated software packages running and tested on industry standard hardware, so they can minimise their development effort and further improve their time to market - and DC-VoicePacket responds to that requirement.&uot;

DC-VoicePacket offers the following built-in features for building carrier grade voice gateway systems.

-- Signalling and call control for SS7, ATM, MPLS, H.323, MGCP/Megaco, SIP and PacketCable

-- Media processing, including compression, echo-cancellation and transcoding

-- Pre-integrated line cards for TDM termination (nxT1 and T3), ATM (OC3 and OC12) and Ethernet (100Mbps and 1Gbps)

-- Industry leading standard cPCI chassis

-- Software and hardware fault tolerance 

-- Scalable multi-shelf, multi-rack cluster architecture supporting up to more than 100,000 concurrent calls

-- Flexible architecture to allow easy integration of new features and protocols in response to changing market requirements

-- Integration with OSS services such as billing, settlement, security and management.

&uot;DC-VoicePacket represents a significant enhancement in the level of product packaging and integration we can offer our OEMs - and they're very excited about it.&uot; said John Palombo, Director of DC-VoicePacket development at DCL. &uot;It really reduces their development effort, gets them to market quicker, and means they can concentrate on innovative products that provide significant cost savings or new services to their customers.&uot;

DC-VoicePacket for DSL

DC-VoicePacket for DSL provides OEMs selling to DSL operators with a single box solution that concentrates multiple voice circuits from downstream DSL access networks and interconnects into the core telephony network without requiring a traditional Class 5 (Central Office) switch.

A full range of downstream protocols are supported for interfacing to DSL access networks, while on the upstream side connections can be made either into the traditional PSTN using SS7/TDM or across a core data network using the backbone trunking features in DC-VoicePacket for Trunking. In addition to basic services, DC-VoicePacket for DSL provides a platform for advanced services that allows the service provider to easily offer high-value, high-margin services.

DC-VoicePacket for Cable

DC-VoicePacket for Cable offers OEMs selling to cable providers a single box PacketCable compliant solution that switches voice from downstream cable access networks into the core telephony network without requiring a traditional Class 5 switch.

Full PacketCable v1.0 support is provided for interfacing to cable access networks, while on the upstream side connections can be made either into the traditional PSTN using SS7/TDM or across a core data network using the backbone trunking features in DC-VoicePacket for Trunking. DC-VoicePacket for Cable also provides a platform for advanced services that allows the service provider to easily offer high-value, high-margin services.

DC-VoicePacket for Trunking

DC-VoicePacket for Trunking extends the traditional TDM phone network across a packet backbone, while maintaining the full richness of the SS7 signalling protocol. To the rest of the network a DC-VoicePacket for Trunking system appears as a normal Class 4 (Tandem) switch, but the voice traffic is transported over the core network in native packet form, and SS7 signalling traffic is tunnelled between the local and remote systems.

DC-VoicePacket for Trunking currently supports switched calls across a core ATM network using the emerging ITU and ATM Forum VTOA standards, and will be extended to provide the same level of support over core IP networks, using RTP rather than AAL1/2 to carry the voice.

About Data Connection Limited

Data Connection Limited (DCL) is the leading independent developer and supplier of ATM, MPLS, Conferencing, Internet Telephony, Unified Messaging, Directory, SNA and SS7 portable products. Customers include 3Com, Cabletron, Cisco, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi, IBM Corp., Lucent, Microsoft, Nortel Networks, NCR, SGI and Sun. Data Connection is headquartered in London UK, with US offices in Reston, VA. It was founded in 1981 and is privately held. During each of the past 18 years its profits have exceeded 20% of revenue. Last year sales exceeded $30M, of which over 90% were outside the UK, mostly in the US, leading to the company's second Queen's Award for outstanding export performance.

For further information, contact: Tony Downes: PR Director phone: [phone] e-mail: [e-mail] URL: http://www.datcon.co.uk .

Data Connection is a Trademark of Data Connection Limited (UK) and Data Connection Corporation (US). All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.