MetaSwitch Customers Assured of Compliance with Recent FCC VoIP Rulings

Alameda, CA: August 9, 2005. In response to a ruling released today by the Federal Communications Commission concerning Voice over IP (VoIP) providers, MetaSwitch has confirmed that customers of its Class 4/5 Softswitch are able to fully comply with all regulatory requirements. Specifically, more than 135 MetaSwitch systems deployed in the field already support CALEA and E911 emergency call routing features for both traditional wireline and VoIP subscribers, with no requirement for additional adjunct equipment.

The FCC's most recent Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), released today, requires any service provider offering VoIP connectivity to the PSTN to meet the requirements of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA). This follows another NPRM, released on June 3, which required such carriers to provide 911 emergency calling capabilities to all subscribers.

"As one of the leading providers of carrier-class next generation telephony equipment, MetaSwitch takes seriously its responsibility to ensure that its customers are able to comply with all applicable regulations," commented John Lazar, MetaSwitch CEO. "This is just one of the many reasons VoIP providers are increasingly realizing the value that MetaSwitch brings."

MetaSwitch's softswitch system delivers a full range of Class 4/5 features including the following capabilities that are critical to VoIP providers' ability to meet regulatory requirements.

• E911 call routing to multiple Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) over dedicated MF and / or SS7 trunks. MetaSwitch also has close partnerships with leading national providers to enable carriers to meet requirements for mobile VoIP location registration. A recently-published detailed Application Note is available to MetaSwitch users describing the implementation requirements.
• CALEA wiretap functions (to appropriately authorized users), fully conformant with the Telecommunications Industry Association's J-STD-025A specification. The MetaSwitch system provides the access point for both call content and call information, and supports concurrent intercept connectivity to multiple law enforcement agencies. MetaSwitch's implementation has been reviewed by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), ensuring that it meets the requirement for "safe harbor" under the CALEA regulations.
• Access-agnostic services and signaling. MetaSwitch's standards-based universal network architecture supports just about every legacy and packet-based access protocol, including TDM (GR-303, PRI, T1/T3), VoATM (BLES), and VoIP (MGCP, PacketCable NCS, H.248 and SIP). Crucially, all switch services (including E911 and CALEA) are available to all subscribers, whatever the access technology used.

The relevant FCC rulings can be found at http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-187A1.pdf and http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-05-116A1.pdf. More information on MetaSwitch's solutions is available at www.metaswitch.com.

About MetaSwitch

MetaSwitch is the industry's leading vendor of Class 4/5 softswitch and enhanced applications solutions for packet and TDM networks. Its widely deployed call agent, media/signaling gateway and application server platform supports over 100 Class 5 features including CLASS services, IP Centrex, Unified Messaging, E911, LNP, 1-800 and CALEA, and scales from a few hundred to half a million subscribers in both integrated and distributed configurations. Customers include incumbent and competitive local exchange carriers, as well as operators of broadband wireless, cable and fiber networks.

MetaSwitch is a division of established telecom technology provider Data Connection Limited (DCL). The company is consistently profitable and privately held, with US locations in California, Virginia, Texas and Florida, and European headquarters in London, UK.

Data Connection and MetaSwitch are trademarks of Data Connection Limited and Data Connection Corporation. Brands and products referenced herein are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.