Nortel Networks: Nortel Networks Introduces Application Switch, Secure Communication Portfolio

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Nortel Networks Introduces Application Switch, Secure Communication Portfolio

Products Offer Multi-Platform Functionality, Optimize Secure Application Performance

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Nortel Networks* [NYSE/TSX: NT] announced the newest additions to its Ethernet Switch portfolio, designed to optimize networks to serve mission-critical business applications with greater efficiency, higher availability and the highest levels of performance available.

Crucial for enterprises and service providers that offer outsourced, managed services, this new family of application switch platforms offers increased intelligence to improve business performance and employee productivity in a secure environment.

The new products designed up-front to support application switching are Nortel Networks Alteon* 2424 Application Switch and Alteon 2424-SSL. Both platforms feature processors designed specifically to provide traffic management for virtually any enterprise application, while Alteon 2424-SSL features integrated SSL processing acceleration and SSL Virtual Private Network (VPN) functionality.

Also unveiled today is Alteon 8661 SSL Acceleration Module, which brings a scalable SSL acceleration capability to Nortel Networks Passport* 8600 Layer 2-7 Intelligent Routing Switch. SSL acceleration is the second application integrated into Passport 8600 Layer 2-7 Intelligent Routing Switch, following integration of the Web Switch Module that added Layer 4-7 switching intelligence.

“Our business is reliant on an intelligent infrastructure that can support the most advanced applications seamlessly and securely,” said Wayne Lee, senior technical architect, Strategy and Service Development Group, IT Management Services Department, NTT Communications Corporation. “We have been using Alteon Ethernet switching products for some time and are very pleased with their intelligence, performance and scalability. Combining high port density Ethernet switching with the robust new applications support of their new generation of application switches is very powerful. We have evaluated the new line of intelligent Alteon Application Switches and are very pleased with the results.”

“Nortel Networks new Alteon platforms drive down size and cost while delivering a higher level of performance and potential for new enterprise-focused applications,” said Joel Conover, principal analyst, Current Analysis. “These new features propel their Alteon product into new emerging markets such as SSL VPNs, while providing an upgrade path for customers that demand more performance for their application switching needs. The availability of a full-featured SSL-VPN to the new Alteon product greatly improves Nortel Networks ability to penetrate the enterprise with this technology.”

“No longer will businesses have to compensate for the limitations of their networks,” said Atul Bhatnager, vice president and general manager, Ethernet Switching, Nortel Networks. “They will now be able to put their business cases first and implement elements that enable improvements in network performance, scalability, availability and security. In addition to better serving their communications needs, this solution is designed to lower total cost of network ownership.”

Uniting the diverse elements of a company’s business-critical applications requires not only creating the means for multiple, geographically-dispersed databases to share information, but is predicated on bringing the right information at the right time to the right person, regardless of where they are or how they are accessing the communications infrastructure. These new platforms all have multi-layered, integrated security features, enabling customers to implement a secure information infrastructure by encrypting applications, business critical communications and sensitive electronic transactions.

Alteon application switches deliver the Layer 4-7 performance and feature flexibility to optimize networks for demanding applications like voice over IP, wireless, Web services and database applications. Establishing policies based on application, user, content, access device type and other options allows network administrators to map network assets and capabilities to specific business priorities.

The enabling technology of Alteon 2424 series application switches is a distributed processing architecture tightly integrated with Alteon Operating System (OS) software that provides intelligent traffic management. The Alteon 2424 series features fast Ethernet and gigabit connectivity, supports up to two million concurrent sessions, and provides market-leading Layer 7 switching performance that supports more than 51,000 sessions per second with zero session loss. The switches are configured with 28 ports in a one rack unit form factor.

“Our rigorous testing regimen stressed the Alteon 2424 platform to its limits and showed that the device significantly outperformed rival products tested,” said Kevin Tolly, president and chief executive officer, The Tolly Group. “The performance delivered by Alteon 2424 facilitates the serving of applications with scalability, security and efficiency.”

The Tolly Group tests revealed that Alteon 2424 offers a reliable and sustainable connection rate more than three times that of competitive devices tested, positioning Alteon 2424 to handle a wider range of deployments.

In addition, Alteon 2424-SSL has integrated SSL acceleration features that can support 16,000 SSL transactions concurrently and process up to 2,000 SSL transactions per second. The platform provides end-to-end encryption and offers enhanced security features, including denial of service protection, application-layer filtering, application access control, port mirroring and bandwidth management. The integrated SSL VPN capabilities provide encrypted application tunneling, client authentication against existing databases and support for virtually all enterprise applications. The simplicity of deploying SSL VPNs positions companies to reduce expenses without sacrificing security.

The Alteon Application Switch architecture can rapidly accommodate new applications as they become available. The architecture allows the processing power of each of the switch and application processors to be aggregated to provide processing power where it is needed. This enables all four switch processors and associated application processors to provide computing power collectively, instead of having processors lie idle while another element of the switch becomes overwhelmed. This aspect, called the Virtual Matrix Architecture, brings all processing elements of the switch to bear for traffic spikes isolated to a single port or switch element.

Alteon Layer 2-7 traffic management features optimize data center operations. Because multiple applications can be provisioned via a single Alteon application switch and network performance can be increased dramatically simply by deploying the application switches in a plug and play architecture, capital and operational expenditures associated with networking can be minimized. Likewise, the simplified deployment, platform consolidation, centralized management and scalability of Passport 8600 Intelligent Routing Switch equipped with Alteon 8661 SSL Acceleration Module can facilitate a very favorable return on investment and a low total cost of ownership.

Passport 8600 Intelligent Routing Switch equipped with Alteon 8661 SSL Acceleration Module intelligently accelerates secure business transactions and confidential data by offloading SSL processing from local servers without imposing delays on other traffic in the same data path. Each 8661 SSL Acceleration module can process 3,000 SSL transactions per second and 64,000 concurrent sessions with 260 megabits per second of bulk encryption throughput. Since the Passport 8600 ten slot chassis can accommodate up to four Alteon 8661 blades, customers can scale the platform to an industry-leading 12,000 SSL transactions per second and 256,000 concurrent sessions with 1.04 gigabits per second of bulk encryption.

Alteon Application Switch 2424 and Alteon 8661 SSL Acceleration Module will be available later in February 2003. Alteon 2424-SSL will be available in April 2003.

Nortel Networks is an industry leader and innovator focused on transforming how the world communicates and exchanges information. The Company is supplying its service provider and enterprise customers with communications technology and infrastructure to enable value-added IP data, voice and multimedia services spanning Wireless Networks, Wireline Networks, Enterprise Networks, and Optical Networks. As a global company, Nortel Networks does business in more than 150 countries. More information about Nortel Networks can be found on the Web at www.nortelnetworks.com.

Certain information included in this press release is forward-looking and is subject to important risks and uncertainties. The results or events predicted in these statements may differ materially from actual results or events. Factors which could cause results or events to differ from current expectations include, among other things: the severity and duration of the industry adjustment; the sufficiency of our restructuring activities, including the potential for higher actual costs to be incurred in connection with restructuring actions compared to the estimated costs of such actions; fluctuations in operating results and general industry, economic and market conditions and growth rates; the ability to recruit and retain qualified employees; fluctuations in cash flow, the level of outstanding debt and debt ratings; the ability to meet financial covenants contained in our credit agreements; the ability to make acquisitions and/or integrate the operations and technologies of acquired businesses in an effective manner; the impact of rapid technological and market change; the impact of price and product competition; international growth and global economic conditions, particularly in emerging markets and including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of rationalization in the telecommunications industry; the dependence on new product development; the uncertainties of the Internet; the impact of the credit risks of our customers and the impact of customer financing and commitments; stock market volatility; the entrance into an increased number of supply and outsourcing contracts which contain delivery and installation provisions, which, if not met, could result in the payment of substantial penalties or liquidated damages; the ability to obtain timely, adequate and reasonably priced component parts from suppliers and internal manufacturing capacity; the future success of our strategic alliances; and the adverse resolution of litigation. For additional information with respect to certain of these and other factors, see the reports filed by Nortel Networks with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, Nortel Networks disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

*Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks logo, the Globemark, Alteon and Passport are trademarks of Nortel Networks.

Contact for Press and Analysts:

Pat Cooper
Nortel Networks
(408) 495-9608
pat.cooper@nortel.com

Giorgia Casnedi
Nortel Networks
+44 1628 43 3117
casnedi@nortel.com

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