Occam Networks Introduces Industry's First Gigabit Ethernet and IP-based Loop Carrier System for Voice and Broadband Service Delivery.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 12, 2003

BLC 6000 System allows carriers to leverage cost benefits of

Ethernet and flexibility of IP to provide voice, data and video

services quickly and easily to thousands of subscribers

Occam Networks Inc. (OTCBB: OCCM), a supplier of innovative Ethernet and IP-based loop carrier equipment to telecommunications companies worldwide, today announced its new BLC 6000 Broadband Loop Carrier System. The BLC 6000 System is the first modular loop carrier system that integrates standard IP protocols for transport and control, offers scalable Ethernet trunking and eliminates the need for additional pieces of access equipment such as a DSLAM, Ethernet switch, Optical Add Drop multiplexor and VoIP gateway. The BLC 6000 System is also the first to integrate Gigabit Ethernet transport, which provides cost effective bandwidth for high numbers of DSL subscribers, video distribution or delivery of triple play services.

"What drew us to Occam's earlier products was the all-Ethernet architecture and also the optical ring capability," said Dan Smith, vice president of engineering and planning at Comporium Communications. "The BLC 6000, operating at Gigabit Ethernet speeds, will provide even more scalability as we expand our broadband service. We like the fact that the BLC 6000's modular design will allow us to add on future services when the time is right."

Additional features of the BLC 6000 System include the integration of Occam's unique Ethernet Protection Switching (EPS) and Service Quality Management (SQM) technologies for delivering carrier-quality IP voice over Ethernet with the reliability of SONET and voice quality as good or better than TDM. The system also lowers network costs by integrating transport on each subscriber blade, removing the need for common control cards thereby freeing up rack and chassis space for subscriber services.

"As a cooperative, it is our goal to serve our members with cost-effective triple play services -- POTS, data and video services," said Danny Vaughn, network manager at Citizens Telephone Cooperative. "After a thorough review of a variety of access platforms, we selected the Occam BLC 6000 for its ability to fit into our network and the ease with which our technicians can provision and manage services."

The BLC 6000 System cost-effectively supports the delivery of traditional TDM services such as lifeline POTS and T1s, and an IP Service Delivery model including Internet Group Multicast Protocol (IGMP) and Media Gateway Control Protocol (MGCP) for the delivery of video and softswitch-controlled voice services.

"New services and changing business models are putting new demands on the access network and the BLC 6000 System enables carriers to alleviate that burden now while putting the infrastructure in place to take advantage of future needs," said Russ Sharer, vice president of marketing and business development at Occam Networks. "We're giving carriers the ability to take advantage of packet technologies to provide broadband on every port, transition easily to a softswitch controlled voice network and deliver triple play and video services today or at any point in the future."

Through its unique Intelligent Blade Interconnection Architecture (IBIA) the BLC 6000 System can scale from 24 to thousands of subscribers. The distributed control, modular structure shares blades across a variety of chassis sizes, allowing carriers to "operationalize" the BLC once and then deploy it in high and low density areas of their network in remote terminals or central offices. The BLC 6000 System also supports both copper and fiber services to the subscriber, enabling carriers to build fiber-to-the-curb networks immediately and later upgrade to fiber-to-the-home without switching loop carriers.

"With the recent FCC ruling, a product that supports copper subscriber services today and the transition to fiber tomorrow without the need to change out the system is highly desirable to service providers," said Claudia Bacco, president of Telechoice Inc. "Occam's architecture leveraging Gigabit Ethernet as the feeder network gives them the economics to support traditional POTS and the ability to scale to tens of megabits to the home or business in the future."

Demonstrations of the BLC 6000 System, including Triple Play applications, will be conducted at SUPERCOMM in booth 11119, hall C. The BLC 6000 System will be available in early Q3 2003. Pricing varies by configuration.

About Occam Networks Inc.

Occam Networks Inc. develops and markets a suite of Broadband Loop Carriers, innovative Ethernet- and IP-based loop carrier platforms that enable telecommunications service providers to profitably deliver a variety of traditional as well as packetized voice, broadband and Internet Protocol (IP) services from a single, converged, all-packet access network. Occam is headquartered in Santa Barbara. Additional information can be found at www.occamnetworks.com.

Portions of this press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future performance of Occam Networks. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from any future performance suggested in such statements. Rapidly changing technologies and market conditions may require changes to Occam's products. Occam does not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Please also refer to the company's most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q, annual report on Form 10-K and other filings with the SEC, including the S-4 registration statement filed in connection with the company's recent merger. These filings contain and identify other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements.