David Sugar Elected to Vovida Networks Sponsored Seat on International Softswitch Consortium.

Business Editors, High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 22, 2000

The Linux development community and open source community elected David Sugar as their representative to participate on the International Softswitch Consortium (ISC).

Vovida Networks sponsored the open election and has contributed the yearly ISC membership fee, travel and lodging for a member of the Linux development/open source community to participate on the ISC.

"I am very excited about this opportunity Vovida has provided for the free and open source software communities to work with the ISC to further promote open interoperable standards for the benefit of telephony developers everywhere," said David Sugar, after receiving the news of his election. As the GNU maintainer for Bayonne (the GNU project's IVR and future softswitch effort), David has been deeply committed to promoting fully open standards and in helping others in the development of free telephony software. In addition to his role as a GNU maintainer, he has developed some of the earliest GNU/Linux telephony projects, and is a recent contributor to FreeBSD and the lead developer of the TOSI project: the BSD communities' telephony software effort. David is the CTO of Open Source Telecom Corporation.

Vovida Networks would like to thank those who participated in the election. Voting took place during the LinuxWorld Conference and Expo August 15th - 17th.

The International Softswitch Consortium promotes industry support for open standards and protocols that will provide the foundation for most voice over IP products and services. Further information about the ISC can be found at their website at www.softswitch.org.

Vovida Networks is a founding member of the International Softswitch Consortium and has continued a leading role in contributing to the ISC's growth to over 150 companies. Vovida is the global pioneer of open source telephony and the first company in the world to release a full suit of royalty free, open source VoIP protocols. Its core product is the Vovida Open Communication Application Library (VOCAL), which is SIP-centric, toll quality, carrier grade communications software for next generation carriers and service providers. VOCAL enables voice, video and data communications for both business and residential subscribers through broadband cable, DSL and wireless environments. Its scalable, highly flexible service provider communications' solution has received the August 2000 LinuxWorld Expo "Show Favorite" for Best Internet/Intranet/Extranet Product, the CTI EXPO Fall 1999 "Best of Show" Award, and the August 1999 LinuxWorld Expo "Show Favorite" Award for Best Communications Product. Product development is conducted in San Jose, California (USA), Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada) and Nizhny Novgorod (Russia). Additional information can be found at www.vovida.com.