Daytona Beach LPGA Community Driving Toward Florida's First Deployment of Fiberpath FTTH Platform From Optical Solutions Inc.

Business/Technology Editors

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 20, 2001

GateHouse and Optical Solutions Help the LPGA International Community

Deploy Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) To Future-Proof Converged

Telephone, Television and Internet Services

Optical Solutions Inc. and GateHouse Networks announced today that Optical Solutions' FiberPath(TM) optical fiber-to-the-home system for converged telephone, cable television and Internet services will be deployed in the LPGA planned residential community in Daytona Beach. The LPGA International community is being developed by Renar Homes. GateHouse and Optical Solutions expect to turn up the first service by early summer.

"The LPGA International community is an exceptional showcase for us because we have future-proofed our telephone, television and Internet services, ensuring that residents receive the most reliable services that supply the greatest capacity in a changing world," said Ned Lamont, President, GateHouse. "Thanks to Optical Solutions' FiberPath platform, we are delivering higher speed Internet access and more cable television services that `knock the socks' off of what cable operators offer today."

"Optical Solutions came in head-and-shoulders above the rest in our national evaluation of available broadband converged services," said Arden Doss, President, Renar Homes. "Their cutting-edge technology and superior technical team will enable residents to enjoy entertainment, education and other important resources that are second to none."

According to terms of the contract between Optical Solutions and GateHouse, Optical Solutions will supply the network equipment necessary to converge the telephone, television and Internet services onto the fiber optic links connecting all 6,500 residential units of the 6-mile community. The FiberPath system will deliver up to four telephone lines per subscriber, up to 80 analog cable television channels plus digital cable, and high-speed data scalable in 64Kbps increments up to 10Mbps with future bandwidth scalability up to 100Mbps.

Officials of Daytona Beach are looking forward to bringing FTTH to their community.

"We are very excited to have a cutting-edge technology at LPGA that very few communities around the country and no communities in Florida currently have," said Rich Quigley, Assistant City Manager for Technology/Support Services, City of Daytona Beach.

"Fiber-to-the-home provides future-proofing and is aesthetically pleasing, since the cable plant is all installed underground and is connected to a small box containing equipment mounted on the outside of the home. One of the benefits of this technology is that much of the current in-home equipment like set-top boxes being used by cable providers can be replaced, giving the customer much greater control of how service is used and distributed within the home," explained Cynthia Pols, consultant to the city of Daytona Beach. Pols is president and general counsel for the Washington DC-based Institute for the Positive Use of Technology (InPUT).

The selection of Optical Solutions' FiberPath platform gives LPGA International a distinct competitive advantage over other local telecommunications services that use technologies such as digital subscriber line (DSL), hybrid/fiber coax (HFC) and wireless local loop. As a complete fiber-optic solution for FTTH deployments, FiberPath encompasses a head-end bay of equipment, which can be co-located with a class 5 switch or interconnected through a GR-303 interface. The head-end bay sends and receives laser-driven light signals through optical fiber cables to and from a residence-mounted node via a passive optical network. The node is Optical Solutions' broadly patented Home Universal Demarcation Point (HUDP), which converts the optical signals into electronic signals needed for subscribers' existing telephones, televisions and data modems.

"Nationwide, developers like Renar are discovering that fiber-to-the-home delivers substantial quality of life benefits to their communities," said Darryl Ponder, Chairman and CEO of Optical Solutions, Inc. "We welcome the opportunity to work with GateHouse and demonstrate the `life-enriching nature' of our FiberPath platform."

About Optical Solutions Inc.

Optical Solutions Inc. is leading the industry with its patented FiberPath solution, which incorporates a passive optical network (PON) for delivery of voice, video and high-speed data directly to the home and broader community. Optical Solutions' customers include a variety of competitive and independent local exchange carriers, communications equipment resellers and other service providers. For more information, please visit www.opticalsolutions.com.

About GateHouse Networks

GateHouse Networks, a division of Lamont Digital Systems, Inc., is building telecommunications systems providing telephony, high speed data, analog and digital cable television, and security for eight master planned communities like LPGA. Lamont currently operates 150 systems across the country serving over 150,000 subscribers. For more information, please visit http://www.gatehousenetworks.com.