Teknovus and Furukawa Announce GBIC ONU; First-to-Market GEPON GBIC Form-Factor Based on Teknovus' 3713 ONU.

PETALUMA, Calif. -- Teknovus, the leading provider of Gigabit Ethernet Optical Network (GEPON) chipsets for the deployment of triple-play services in broadband access networks, announced that Furukawa has developed a GEPON ONU (Optical Networking Unit) with a GBIC (Gigabit Interface Converter) form-factor based on Teknovus' TK3713 ONU chip. Furukawa's ONU solution, the FITELwaveAG8, which fits entirely within the standard GBIC form-factor, enables switch and router vendors to expand easily into the FTTB (Fiber To The Business) and fiber-based MTU (Multi-Tenant- Unit) markets.

Furukawa is the first vendor to announce such a product based on Teknovus' TK3713 ONU chip. Teknovus' TK3713 enabled Furukawa to build an entire ONU within the power requirements and form-factor of the GBIC. This is a milestone for PON and is based on the simplicity of Ethernet solutions along with the highly integrated Teknovus TK3713 chip. Furukawa's FITELwaveAG8 meets all GBIC standards, including low-power usage and a compact transceiver using its OSA (Optical Sub-Assembly) technology.

Furukawa's GBIC ONU facilitates the expansion of the traditional Ethernet communications equipment manufacturers into the EPON market. These switch, router and DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer) manufacturers can now merge Teknovus' OLT (Optical Line Terminal) hardware and management software into their central office equipment and Furukawa's GBIC ONU into their SME (Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise) equipment, enabling GEPON-based FTTB as well as residential MTU deployments. Alternatively, these OEMs can sell their SME solutions directly to the more than 20 carriers who are operating networks using Teknovus' GEPON chips already.

"We chose Teknovus' TK3713 ONU as the basis for our GBIC based on its highly integrated design, superb management software, and low cost," stated Mr. Enomoto, Senior General Manager, Broadband Products Division of Furukawa. "We look forward to supporting the traditional switch and router manufacturers as they move into the growing EPON market, enabling them to expand from their existing installations into FTTB."

Dr. Rex Naden, CEO of Teknovus, added, "The traditional Ethernet switch, router and DSLAM vendors have been watching GEPON deployments around the world. We are pleased to provide them with the ability to start selling existing products to GEPON network operators today, thus taking advantage of their large installed equipment and customer base."

Come see the Furukawa's GBIC form-factor ONU at Teknovus at Globalcomm - booth #66070.

About Furukawa

The Furukawa Electric Co. Ltd. (www.furukawa.co.jp/english) is a $7 billion global leader in the design, manufacture and supply of fiber optic products, network products, electronics components, power cables, nonferrous metals, and other advanced technology products. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, FEC operates production facilities on five continents around the globe. To get more information on this product, contact the Technology Alliance Group, Inc.'s General Manager, Marketing Dept. Hiroko Kuroyanagi at [e-mail] and visit www.tech-alliancegroup.com.

About Teknovus

Teknovus delivers the only Gigabit Ethernet Passive Optical Network (GEPON) chipsets that fully support low-cost, IPTV-triple-play services via optical fiber networks. Teknovus has shipped over two million GEPON ports into more than 20 carriers worldwide. Teknovus chipsets are changing the design of broadband access networks by increasing transport capacity, optimizing fiber infrastructure, improving manageability, integrating services functionality, and reducing the cost of optical access. To learn more about Teknovus, see www.teknovus.com.