MCI USES SYNC RESEARCH'S FRAMENODE PRODUCTS TO PROVIDE PROACTIVE MANAGEMENT OF SNA-TAILORED FRAME RELAY ACCESS.

ATLANTA and IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 1O, 1996--MCI and Sync Research today announced an agreement in which Sync's FrameNode family of SNA internetworking frame relay access devices (FRADs) will be integrated in MCI's Enterprise WAN Managed Services. Under the agreement, MCI customers can now purchase, lease or rent Sync Research products directly from MCI. This integrated, turn-key offering is targeted at US businesses looking for a comprehensive, end-to-end managed solution for migrating their SNA leased line networks to MCI's HyperStream Frame Relay.

"MCI is pleased to have selected Sync to be the first provider of frame relay access solutions for our SNA managed services offering. Sync's excellent reputation as a pioneer in the SNA over frame relay market make it a logical addition to our Enterprise WAN Managed Services portfolio," said John Crooks, MCI's director of Enterprise Services Marketing. "Our customers can now leverage the experience of two SNA-savvy companies, making their migration from SNA to frame relay a positive and efficient process."

"MCI's SNA managed service offering will further extend the cost-effectiveness of frame relay by reducing migration costs and offloading wide-area network management responsibilities," states Michael Sullivan, Assistant Vice President-Information Systems of Citizens National Bank of Henderson, Texas. "MCI's selection of Sync as their FRAD partner enhances the service. By definition, SNA managed services require access devices with extensive SNA and WAN management capabilities. Our hands-on experience with Sync has proven their superiority in this area."

MCI's customers will benefit from this partnership by having a SNA-tailored managed service that incorporates best-of-breed network and CPE components. In addition to the potential for significant reductions in circuit management related operating costs, migrating SNA networks from leased lines to MCI's HyperStream Frame Relay service can provide consolidation of multiple branch applications (e.g. SNA, BSC/3270 and client/server), and improved response times. "This Sync and MCI alliance helps IBM-centric customers make the migration decision from leased lines to frame relay with more confidence," said Lisa Henderson, broadband consultant at TeleChoice, a telecommunications consulting firm based in Verona, NJ. "With a managed SNA service offering, companies can count on a single point of contact for the entire networking solution during the design, implementation and ongoing maintenance and management of the service."

MCI's Enterprise WAN Managed Services provides customers with a single-point solution for the design, implementation and management of wide area networks. Services include: network design and procurement including financing; network implementation; network management; and consulting services.

"MCI understands that mission-critical SNA networks are a breed apart. You just can't take a network that has been 20 years in the making and migrate it to frame relay without a well thought-out, SNA-tailored offering," states Todd Krautkremer, vice president of marketing at Sync Research. "This migration is exactly what our FrameNode product was designed for, and MCI's selection of Sync substantiates their commitment to delivering a best-of-breed service."

MCI, headquartered in Washington, DC, provides a full range of integrated communication services to more than 20 million customers. Credited with opening up the US long distance market for competition, MCI is now leading the charge to bring competition to the $100 billion local market, offering American consumers for the first time the freedom to choose their local carrier. With quarterly annualized revenue of more than $18 billion, MCI is one of the largest and fastest growing telecommunication companies in the world.

Sync Research (NASDAQ:SYNX) develops and markets WAN access internetworking and multiservice digital transmission and circuit management products designed to enable corporations to gracefully migrate their mission-critical wide-area network to new, intelligent carrier services such as frame relay. The award-winning FrameNode family of frame relay access device (FRAD) is specifically geared for IBM-based enterprises that are converging their mission-critical SNA and client/server wide-area networks onto private and public frame relay backbones.

CONTACT: Sync Research

Kelly Williams, 714/460-4316

or

Tony Fisch Consulting

Tony Fisch, 818/501-6608

or

MCI Telecommunications

John R. Houser, 312/470-4820

[e-mail]