Industry Forum to Accelerate Deployment of Open Multiservice Switching Systems

Fremont, Calif. - November 23, 1998 - A group of leading telecom firms announced today the formation of the Multiservice Switching Forum (MSF). The founding members from the carrier and equipment community include technology leaders such as MCI WorldCom, Cisco Systems, Bellcore, AT&T, Alcatel, Ascend Communications, British Telecom, Fujitsu Network Communications, Lucent Technologies, Nortel Networks, Siemens, Telecom Italia, Telia AB, and US West.

The new forum is an open membership organization committed to reaching and promoting consensus on implementation of ATM-capable multiservice switching systems. These systems support voice, video, private line, and data such as Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Frame Relay, and Internet Protocol (IP) services. Multiservice systems may use a broad range of access technologies, including traditional Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL), wireless data, and cable modems.

The MSF will enable carriers to deploy open switching systems with components from multiple vendors. This will accelerate deployment of next generation networks supporting advanced, integrated broadband communications services.

"The MSF is dedicated to an open systems model that will expedite the delivery of new integrated broadband communications services to the marketplace," said Charles Corbalis, Vice President and General Manager of Cisco's Multiservice Switching Business Unit. "Multiservice switching systems will benefit from the same innovation and cost reductions that open systems in the computing world have achieved. The MSF is a clear win-win for the industry."

The transition of traditional TDM networks to a packet/cell network model, which supports voice, data and video services, is already underway with the growth of the Internet. The MSF will complement the scope and activities of existing associations by enabling the integration of leading components from multiple vendors into a single multiservice switching system. The MSF will focus on protocols and interfaces used within switching systems and will use specifications of the ATM Forum, Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Frame Relay Forum, Bellcore Generic Requirements process, and other industry associations.

"Bringing industry leaders together is critical to achieving the open systems goals of the MSF Forum," said John Boese, Vice President and General Manager of Advanced Network Solutions at Bellcore. "We also plan to work in conjunction with other public forums and standards bodies, including reflecting the work of the MSF in Bellcore's Generic Requirements process for voice over packet networks."

The initial working groups proposed by the MSF include Architecture, Switch Control, and Voice. The founding members have proposed provisional Implementation Agreements for the Architecture and the Virtual Switch Interface (VSI) protocol for Switch Control. The MSF endorses and is contributing to the IETF activity to standardize the Media Gateway Control Protocol (MGCP) for supporting Voice over

Internet Protocol (VoIP) and Voice over Asynchronous Transfer Mode (VoATM) services. Additional working groups will be created by the forum's membership as necessary.

"Our goal is to speed the arrival of an open switching platform that will enable us to deliver new and better services at a lower cost to our customers," said Fred Briggs, Chief Technology Officer of MCI WorldCom. "The MSF is an important step toward this goal and our strategy to develop next generation networks for access aggregation, enhanced quality of service features, and to separate network intelligence from switching and routing."

For information about Multiservice Switching Forum membership, please contact the MSF office at info@msforum.org, or (510) 608-3990. Additional information on MSF can be found at http://www.msforum.org.

About Bellcore
Bellcore, an SAIC company, is a leading provider of communications software, engineering, consulting and training services based on world-class research. Bellcore creates business solutions that make information technology work for telecommunications (more)

carriers, businesses and governments worldwide. More information about Bellcore's products and services is available on Bellcore's web site at http://www.bellcore.com.

About Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. News and information are available at http://www.cisco.com.

About MCI WorldCom
MCI WorldCom (NASDAQ: WCOM) is a global communications company with revenue of more than $30 billion and established operations in over 65 countries encompassing the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions. MCI WorldCom is a premier provider of facilities-based and fully integrated local, long distance, international and Internet services. MCI WorldCom's global networks, including its state-of-the-art pan-European network and transoceanic cable systems, provide end-to-end high-capacity connectivity to more than 38,000 buildings worldwide. For more information on MCI WorldCom, visit the World Wide Web at http://www.mciworldcom.com or http://www.wcom.com.

About Other MSF Founding Companies
AT&T: www.att.com, Alcatel: www.alcatel.com, Ascend Communications: www.ascend.com, British Telecom: www.bt.com, Fujitsu Network Communications: www.fnc.fujitsu.com, Lucent Technologies: www.lucent.com, Nortel Networks: www.nortel.com, Siemens www.icn.siemens.com, Telecom Italia: www.telecomitalia.it, Telia AB: www.telia.se, US West: www.uswest.com.

About Multiservice Switching Forum
The Multiservice Switching Forum is an open membership organization committed to developing and promoting implementation agreements for ATM-capable multiservice switching systems. Additional information on MSF can be found at http://www.msforum.org.

MSF Press Release Addendum

Additional Quotes from MSF Founding Members Alcatel
"We believe that MSF has a key role to play in the deployment of networks providing voice and data conversions," said Dave Hinshaw, Senior Vice President of Alcatel USA's switching business. "Alcatel has always provided strong support for industry forums and standards organizations that promote interoperability and open standards."

Lucent Technologies
"Lucent is already engaged in working the issues of open switching architectures with a number of the other leading MSF participants in industry standards organizations and consortia. We are excited at the opportunity to apply Bell Labs' expertise as an MSF founding member," said Doug Dowden, CTO and Vice President, Switching and Access Systems, Lucent Technologies.

Telecom Italia
"Telecom Italia believes that the evolution from the traditional telephony based network to a multiservice and software intensive architecture requires a strong consensus among all the players in the telecommunication business therefore we support the Multimedia Switching Forum activities and the implementation agreements that will allow this transition adopting open system models" said Mr. Stefano Pileri director of Telecom Italia Network.

Telia
"Acting in fully deregulated markets requires agility," says Claus Clausen, CTO of Telia BU Network. "An established open interface between control logic and traffic propagation components in network equipment enables us to quickly choose best-in-class implementations of services the market demands. We see the activities of the MSF leading to a "PC-revolution" in networking. And so, we are eager to tap in to the potential for a multitude of new products and services based on MSF implementation agreements."

US West
"U S WEST is proud to be a founding member of the Multiservice Switching Forum. Through its participation in the MSF, U S WEST is again demonstrating that it is committed to developing and deploying next-generation data-centric networks for its customers says John Czak, Vice President and CTO of U S WEST."

Additional Information about some of the MSF Founding Companies:

About Alcatel
A world leader in telecommunications systems and equipment, as well as related cables and components activities, Alcatel operates in over 130 countries. Alcatel provides complete solutions and services to operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers, ranging from backbone networks to user terminals. For more information, visit Alcatel on Internet: http://www.alcatel.com or the US web site at www.alcatel.com.

About Lucent Technologies
Lucent Technologies, headquartered in Murray Hill, N. J., designs, builds, and delivers a wide range of public and private networks, communications systems and software, data networking systems, business telephone systems and microelectronic components. Bell Labs is the research and development arm for the company.

About Siemens
Siemens Information and Communication Networks Inc., headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., is a leading provider of information and telecommunications solutions to public network service providers and enterprise customers in North America. The company is a subsidiary of Siemens AG, a global business with $64 billion in sales in the fiscal year ended September 1997. Home page: www.icn.siemens.com.

About Telecom Italia
Telecom Italia is Italy's principal supplier of domestic and international telecommunication services and is one of the largest telecommunication operator in the world. Telecom Italia's network incorporates leading edge optical transmission, high speed switching technologies and network application platforms, seamlessly integrating terrestrial, satellite and wireless media. Telecom Italia offers include a wide range of advanced narrowband and broadband services for business and residential customers all around the world. The Telecom Italia Group's global presence spans more than one hundered countries in the world. More information about Telecom Italia is available on Telecom Italia web site http//www.telecomitalia.it

About Telia
Telia is the leading supplier of telecom-based information services in the Nordic/Baltic region. At the same time, "seamless" pan-European and global services are being realized through powerful alliances and partnerships in Europe and around the world. Annual turnover 1997 reached 46 444 MSEK and the number of employees amounted to approx. 32 500.

About US West
U S WEST (NYSE:USW) provides a full range of telecommunications services - including wireline, wireless PCS, data networking, directory and information services - to more than 25 million customers nationally and in 14 western and midwestern states. More information about U S WEST can be found on the Internet at http://www.uswest.com.

Contact:
Alysia Johnson
MSF Executive Director
+1.510.608.3993

Sehra Eusufzai
MCI WorldCom Public Relations
+1.202.887.2393

Karen Rohack Dorren
Cisco Systems Public Relations
+1.408.719.1716

Ellen Rave
Bellcore Public Relations
+1.973.829.2166