HP introduces automated ETS for testing Bellcore frame relay over ATM Interworking Service; New Test Suite is the Result of HP and Bellcore Agreement Designed to Help NEMs and PNOs Bring Products to Market Faster.

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 21, 1997-- Hewlett-Packard Company today announces the introduction of an automated suite of tests designed to verify network and service interworking functions of frame relay over ATM. The new executable test suite (ETS) is the result of a recent agreement between HP and telecommunications research and test services provider Bell Communications Research, Inc. (Bellcore), which gives HP the ability to develop an ETS from a recognized Bellcore frame relay/ATM test plan.

The new HP E7840A Bellcore frame relay over ATM interworking test suite is intended to improve time to market by helping network equipment manufacturers (NEM) and public network operators (PNO) quickly and accurately verify that their implementation of frame relay service over ATM backbones fully meets the requirements set out by the specifications at all phases of product development. The release is especially timely as frame relay and ATM backbones become key interworking technologies for wide area networks.

"This agreement not only strengthens HP's role as a worldwide leader in the telecommunications testing market, but further enhances the range of integrated ATM testing hardware and software solutions we can offer, thanks to Bellcore's established credibility in this market," said Francois Mandeville, operations manager at HP's Communications Measurements Division (CMD) in Montreal. "HP's experience in developing high-quality, automated, off-the-shelf conformance and interoperability test suites, combined with Bellcore's leadership in developing specifications for testing the implementation of new telecom protocols, creates a winning formula for customers."

Based on Bellcore's SR-3989 test plan, the HP E7840A test suite consists of 83 test cases, which cover the following specifications: -0-

      -- Frame Relay/ATM PVC Network Interworking Implementation
         Agreement (FRF.5);

      -- Frame Relay/ATM PVC Service Interworking Implementation
         Agreement (FRF.8);

      -- ITU I.365.1 Frame Relaying Service-Specific Convergence
         Sublayer (FR SSCS); and

      -- ITU I.555 Frame Relaying Bearer Service Interworking.

-0-

The test suite runs on the industry-standard HP E4200/E4210 broadband series test system platform, which has the largest installed base of any broadband/ATM test platform in the telecommunications industry. Customers already owning the HP platform will now be able to test according to the Bellcore SR-3989 test plan, which was not made executable for HP's dedicated ATM test platform until now.

"As the market demands the integration and interworking of proven technologies, testing frame relay over ATM is becoming increasingly important to customers," said Bill Smith, director, broadband analysis for Bellcore. "But typically, ATM NEMs lack the time to develop their own executable tests. Now, thanks to our agreement with HP, they can benefit from a Bellcore-based off-the-shelf executable test suite that significantly reduces their testing efforts and time to market."

U.S. PRICE AND AVAILABILITY

The HP E7840A Bellcore FR/ATM interworking test suite is $12,750. It is expected to be available in April.

Bellcore, headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey, is a leading provider of communications software, engineering and consulting services based on world-class research. Bellcore creates business solutions that make information technology work for telecommunications carriers, businesses and governments worldwide. Bellcore has sales offices throughout the United States and in Europe, Central and South America, and the Asia-Pacific region. On November 21, 1996, SAIC (Scientific Applications International Corporation) announced that it had agreed to purchase Bellcore once requisite regulatory approvals have been obtained. More information about Bellcore is available at its web site, www.bellcore.com .

Hewlett-Packard Company is a leading global manufacturer of computing, communications and measurement products and services recognized for excellence in quality and support. HP has 112,800 employees and had revenue of $38.4 billion in its 1996 fiscal year.

Information about HP and its products can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.hp.com .

Additional information on HP's ATM conformance test software can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www-ptc.canada.hp.com .

CONTACT: Hewlett Packard Company

Marc Chaput, 514/856-6692 or [e-mail]

John McCreadie, 408/553-7342 or [e-mail]

or

Bellcore

Ken Branson, 201/829-2165

[e-mail]