Dr. John G. Flores and MIT Prof. Richard C. Larson Join eYak Strategic Advisory Board; New Additions Strengthen eYak's Presence In Synchronous Distance Learning.

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 4, 2000

eYak, Inc. (www.eyak.com), a leading provider of carrier-class voice and data application servers for the New Public Network, today announced the appointment of Dr. John G. Flores, Executive Director of the United States Distance Learning Association, and Dr. Richard C. Larson, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Director of the Center for Advanced Educational Studies (CAES) at MIT, to its strategic advisory board. The company has developed a native IP platform that supports applications for distance learning service providers.

"We're proud to have John Flores and Dick Larson join our advisory board. Their deep understanding of technology-enabled distance learning will be of great value to us in the higher education, corporate training, and continuous education markets," said David Friend, eYak's President and CEO. "Distance learning today is mostly asynchronous "canned" courses with little or no teacher interaction. While many of these courses are excellent, they are no substitute for live instruction where students can stop and ask questions, discuss ideas with the instructor and other students, and have the kind of intellectually stimulating and rich interaction typical of a live classroom. Anyone who can teach a live class can, with very little practice, conduct a live class using eYak. All you need is a regular speakerphone and a PC with an Internet connection."

Dr. John Flores, an authority in the field of education and telecommunications, is the Executive Director of the United States Distance Learning Association, the leading global organization immersed in the exciting fields of educational programming and distance learning. Prior to this, Dr. Flores was President and CEO of Global Learning Network, a company focusing on the development and broadcast of educational programming. He has also served as Executive Director of the Massachusetts Corporation for Educational Telecommunications (MCET) and as a K - 12 Superintendent of Schools in Massachusetts.

"Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to see distance learning develop and experience phenomenal growth," said Dr. Flores. "I truly believe that eYak's technology has the potential to fundamentally improve or change synchronous distance learning."

Dr. Richard Larson received his Ph. D. from M.I.T. where he is Professor of Electrical Engineering and Director of CAES. At CAES he has assembled a set of activities that provide MIT with a wide range of capabilities in technology-enabled education, including creatively placing educational content onto the World Wide Web, and serving both on-campus and distant professionals who are mid-career continuing education students. He has spoken widely on the topic of technology-enabled education, including invited Congressional testimony before the House Committee on Science. He serves as Co-Director of the Forum on the Internet and the University. Prior to CAES, Dr. Larson served as Co-Director of the MIT Operations Research Center for over 15 years. Dr. Larson is author, co-author or editor of six books and author of over 70 scientific articles, primarily in technology-enabled education and other fields.

"eYak is quickly becoming a leader in technology-enabled education," said Dr. Larson. "I am excited about the opportunity to work with eYak to further their synchronous distance learning initiatives."

About eYak, Inc.

eYak, Inc., is a leading provider of carrier-class converged voice and data application servers for the New Public Network. The Company's platforms provide conference calling, messaging, collaboration, distance learning, voice information portals, WAP and wireless applications, and voice-enabled web applications. eYak's platforms set new standards for scalability, flexibility, and price. eYak's allsourcing strategy provides flexibility to its customers by giving them the option of using its hosted services, licensing its software to run on their own hardware, or a combination of both. The Company's target customers include new and established communications service providers, including long distance carriers, local exchange carriers, wireless service providers, VoIP network operators, independent enhanced services providers, international telephone companies, distance learning providers, and instant messaging and chat web sites. For more information, please visit www.eyak.com.