MetaSwitch Displaces Legacy Class 5 Switches

Alameda, CA: February 10, 2004. MetaSwitch today underscored its leadership position in the next generation Class 5 switch market with the news that two independent telephone companies are deploying MetaSwitch technology to upgrade and replace their existing central office digital switches. Idaho's Project Mutual Telephone and Tri-County Telephone in Wyoming have selected the MetaSwitch VP3500 as their strategic platform for their existing customer base and regional expansion.

Project Mutual Telephone selected the MetaSwitch VP3500 to avoid the cost of ongoing maintenance and required software upgrades for its existing Nortel DMS-100 Class 5 switch and enable expansion of its service area.

"For us, the decision was clear," says Karl Searle, Senior Vice President and CFO at Project Mutual. "MetaSwitch offered the most flexible and cost-effective solution for our CLEC (Competitive Local Exchange Carrier) division, while retaining the proven reliability that we need to seamlessly transition our existing subscribers. We expect to see ROI on our investment within 6 months."

Similarly, Tri-County Telephone was looking for a viable replacement for its Lucent 5ESS® central office Class 5 switch. Whereas most softswitch deployments to date have been alongside legacy switches (often called the "cap and grow" approach), Tri-County wanted to decommission its Lucent switch and cut across all its existing 8,000+ subscribers as soon as possible. This meant that support for all the traditional services currently used by those subscribers was critical, as was the ability to integrate with legacy Lucent access gear. In addition, as the company planned the growth of its network and business, MetaSwitch's proven ability to deliver Voice over IP was key.

"Throughout our in-depth RFP process, we were impressed by MetaSwitch's responsiveness to our requirements, and their vision for the future of the telephone network," said Randy Lowe, General Manager at Tri-County Telephone. "The telephone industry is changing fast, bringing both threats and opportunities for independent telcos like ourselves. We believe MetaSwitch is the right partner to help us evolve our network and thrive in this next generation world."

"These deployments demonstrate that MetaSwitch is ready and able to become one of the major Class 5 switches in the network for the next decade and beyond," said Mike Ward, MetaSwitch Senior Vice President. "An important element in MetaSwitch's success is that we enable traditional telephone companies to go beyond traditional services and deploy new capabilities such as Voice over IP and Web-based subscriber control."

About Project Mutual Telephone Company

Project Mutual Telephone (PMT) is a full service communication company, providing local telephone service and associated features, including long distance, Internet, DSL, wireless Internet and Cable TV. Headquartered in Rupert, Idaho, Project Mutual Telephone has been serving the Rupert area since 1916. PMT expanded service to Burley, Oakley, and Heyburn, Idaho in the late 1990s. They also provide Internet and wireless PCS service in Twin Falls, Idaho. For more information, see www.pmt.org.

About Tri-County Telephone Company

In 1956 Tri County Telephone Association, Inc., a rural cooperative, began delivering dial tone to four exchanges in the rural Big Horn Basin area of northern Wyoming. In 1994, Tri County Telephone purchased seven telephone exchanges from US West and formed the subsidiary TCT WEST, INC., to serve these customers. Today TCT WEST, INC., provides voice, video and data services to eleven communities. In 1997 TRI TEL, INC., a subsidiary of TCT WEST, INC., was established as a long distance carrier as well as an Internet Service Provider. For more information, see www.tctwest.net.

About MetaSwitch

MetaSwitch, a division of privately held Data Connection, is the result of 22 years of experience supplying leading-edge technology to the telecommunications industry. Data Connection’s track record of consistent profitability ensures long-term commitment to product development and customer support. The widely deployed MetaSwitch VP3500 Next Generation Class 5 Switch offers service providers an immediate solution for broadband (VoIP and/or VoATM) and POTS service and a future-proof "softswitch" architecture for enhanced applications.

MetaSwitch has offices in Alameda, CA, Dallas, TX and Reston, VA in the US and London, Chester and Edinburgh in the UK.

For more information, see www.metaswitch.com.

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.