FCC Approves Paradyne Hotwire MVL as the First DSL Product Allowed to Register Under FCC Part 68; The Hotwire MVL System is Accepted as ``Safe'' When Deployed in the Telephone Network.

LARGO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 6, 1999--The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted Paradyne Corporation the authority to register its Hotwire Multiple Virtual Lines (MVL) customer premises equipment under part 68 of the "FCC Rules for the Registration of Telephone Equipment" code.

The Hotwire MVL system is the first and, to date, the only DSL product granted approval to register as FCC Part 68 compliant.

"In rendering this historic decision, the FCC emphasized the public interest benefits of Hotwire MVL in providing increased customer choice and value along with high-speed Internet access simultaneously with plain old telephone service (POTS), over a single telephone line. The FCC also recognized Hotwire MVL as safe to deploy in the telephone network without harming the public switched telephone network," said Andy May, CEO and president of Paradyne.

Principal Analyst of Networking Strategies at Current Analysis, John Freeman, said "Lawyers, legislators, and lobbyists are just now beginning to prepare for future legal battles revolving around the inter-pair service disruption that is bound to occur as multiple CLECs, as well as the incumbent LEC, deploy large numbers and multiple versions of DSL in each binder group. By using a Part 68 approved technology such as MVL, CLECs and ILECs alike can, to a large extent, protect themselves against such legal action when DSL deployment hits mass market scale in the next couple of years. Other DSL technologies have more intrusive PSD masks and, potentially, may not qualify for Part 68 approval, increasing the liability of those service providers who deploy them." Freeman's full report on the FCC ruling is available at www.currentanalysis.com.

"FCC Rules for the Registration of Telephone Equipment," Part 68, sets forth mandatory technical requirements to protect the telephone network from harm. Presently, the scope of Part 68 does not address DSL equipment. Due to the growth of Internet and associated services, Part 68 will eventually need to be revised to permit the registration of DSL equipment to promote the deployment of advanced broadband services.

Rather than waiting on the sidelines, Paradyne proactively petitioned the FCC for a waiver of select out-of-band signal power rules (Section 68.308(e)) originally intended for registering analog voiceband equipment. Paradyne engineers proposed an alternative technical specification to guide the FCC in determining Hotwire MVL's accordance with Part 68, which the FCC accepted in the waiver.

MVL was designed to meet the same Power Spectral Density (PSD) mask and total signal power constraints as those specified under the mature, industry specification T1.601 for ISDN BRI equipment. By conforming to these signal power requirements and adhering to the balance of Part 68's comprehensive technical requirements, customers and carriers alike are assured of MVL's spectral compatibility and safe deployment in the binder with other services while delivering bandwidth from 128Kbps up to 768Kbps.

ABOUT HOTWIRE MVL

Hotwire MVL is a splitterless DSL modem system that allows voice and high-speed data (up to 768Kbps) to operate simultaneously over a single telephone line. Launched in April 1998, Hotwire MVL has been recognized by the industry with many prestigious awards such as: Current Analysis' "RadioActive" award, Spring Internet World '98 "Best of Show" for Access Services, and Telecommunications Magazine "Product of the Month." Hotwire MVL solutions are designed and optimized for the growing small business markets, including telecommuters, SOHO and remote office connectivity; as well as the expanding residential sector. Hotwire MVL is successfully deployed in local access and multi-tenant solutions by CLECs and Independent Telephone Companies around the world.

ABOUT PARADYNE

Headquartered in Largo, Florida, Paradyne is a broadband access solutions innovator of products and technologies that facilitate high-speed access to networks worldwide for communications, computing and information. The company is recognized as a marketshare leader in DSU/CSUs* and DSL*. Paradyne markets its award-winning analog products, digital access products, Hotwire DSL and MVL systems and an extensive array of frame relay and access multiplexers to Network Service Providers (NSPs), Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Frame Relay Service Providers (FRSPs) and commercial end-users. Paradyne also licenses ETC2, Tripleplay technology and intellectual property incorporated in the V.90 standard. In 1997 and 1998, The Red Herring magazine named Paradyne one of the top 50 privately held hi-technology companies and one of "the hottest companies to watch*" in the United States.

For more information on Paradyne and its products, call 1-800-PARADYNE (U.S. and Canada), 1-727-530-8623 or visit www.paradyne.com.

Editors Note: Visit Paradyne's virtual pressroom at www.paradyne.com/news_n_events for product images and/or additional information. Product availability and pricing subject to change without notification. IDC "Trends in the Digital Access Equipment Arena Report 1996-2002"- November 1997 cites Paradyne as the market share leader. According to the "Remote LAN and Internet Access Worldwide" Dataquest study published December 1998, Paradyne is the No. 2 market leader according to revenue and ADSL ports shipped. The Red Herring Communications published these issues in August of 1997 and 1998. Product availability and pricing are subject to change without notification. Paradyne, FrameSaver, Trueput, Hotwire, MVL, OpenLane and Performance Wizard are trademarks of Paradyne Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.