Polaris Demonstrates Interoperability with Huawei and White Rock Networks at NFOEC 2003

Companies to demonstrate an end-to-end New Generation Metro Optical Solution that will help Service Providers significantly reduce costs while accelerating services

ORLANDO, FL – September 8, 2003 — Polaris Networks, a developer of new generation optical transport switching systems for the metro core today announced a live interoperability demonstration of their OMXTM Optical Transport Switch with leading metro edge equipment from White Rock Networks and Huawei Technologies at the National Fiber Optics Engineers Conference (NFOEC) 2003.

The companies are demonstrating their implementation of a new generation metro optical solution that will allow service providers to simplify their existing networks, significantly reduce costs and deliver a wide range of existing and new generation services. In this demonstration, the White Rock and Huawei equipment feed video traffic over OC48 links to the OMX hub node for switching. The demonstration highlights the scale, density and ease of service provisioning provided by the combined solution.

Polaris Networks' OMX, a Terabit-scalable metro hub transport switch, provides service-aware wideband (VT1.5)/broadband (STS-Nc) digital cross connect capabilities and SONET transport over OC3-to-OC192. Huawei's Optix Metro 1600TM and White Rock's VLX 2020TM are compact MultiService Provisioning Platforms (MSPPs), providing a comprehensive set of high-density electrical and optical interfaces that include DS1, DS3/EC1, 10/100/1000BT Ethernet and SONET OC3-to-OC192. In addition to dramatically reducing costs and enhancing services in the existing network, the solution also gives service providers the opportunity to flexibly introduce new value-added services that include Ethernet private line, Private LAN (VLAN/VPLS) and other switched data services.

"We are pleased to be working with Huawei and White Rock to demonstrate a winning end-to-end metro solution that will help service providers increase their profitability," said Christopher V. Cook, Senior VP of Worldwide Sales and Marketing at Polaris Networks. "NFOEC is a great venue to show this best-of-breed solution that can cost-effectively scale from DS1 to OC192 and allow service providers to migrate to a multiservice architecture. Our combined solution requires only 25% of the space and cost of equivalent traditional approaches."

"Interoperability between networks systems, such as these, can help service providers work through operational issues more quickly and accelerate deployment of new generation services" says Brian VanSteen, Principal, PointEast Research. "Closer integration of these types of solutions solve the challenges of existing networks and their migration. They also raise the bar for new generation metro offerings."

The interoperability demonstration is exhibited at Polaris Networks Booth (#520) at NFOEC 2003, September 8-10 2003 in Orlando, Florida.

Polaris Networks develops new generation optical transport switching systems for metro core networks. From day one, its systems combine optical transport with extensive grooming and switching, managed via a GMPLS-based common control plane. Polaris' architecture is designed for native support of TDM, cell and packet traffic using a single software-defined switching fabric. This enables carriers to cost-effectively simplify their infrastructures, flexibly scale, and provides a smooth migration to a full multiservice intelligent architecture.

Polaris was founded in June 2000 and is staffed by teams from Alcatel, Cisco, Fujitsu, Nortel, Siemens, Tellabs, AT&T and WorldCom. The company is funded by Redpoint Ventures, Venrock Associates, Advanced Technology Ventures, SToRM Ventures and strategic private investors. For more information about Polaris Networks, please visit www.polarisnetworks.com or call (408) 281-7466.

White Rock Networks provides carriers with a family of next-generation optical transport systems that enable the cost-effective delivery of high-speed services in metro areas. The company's innovative building-block architecture provides carriers with "step-function" improvements in their capital and operating costs, as well as deployment flexibility in serving a variety of metro customers. For more information: go to www.whiterock.com.

Established in 1988, Huawei Technologies is a global provider of telecommunications infrastructure and services, specializing in research and development (R&D), production and marketing of communications equipment, providing customized network solutions for telecom carriers in optical, fixed, mobile and data communications networks. Huawei currently delivers to customers throughout the world resulting in strong revenue growth of 68%, reaching US$552 million in 2002 compared with US$328 million in 2001. For more information about Huawei, please visit www.huawei.com or visit its North American subsidiary at www.futurewei.com or please call 972-509-5599.