Integral Access Joins OpenVoB™ Voice over Broadband Interoperability Group

Leading Developer of MPLS-Based Multi-Service Access System to Contribute to Interoperability Initiative for Broadband Voice Services

WASHINGTON - Feb. 20, 2001 - Integral Access, Inc. -- -- the intelligent MPLS access company -- today announced that it has joined the OpenVoB™ Voice over Broadband Interoperability Group (www.openvob.org) to contribute to the development of interoperable voice over broadband technologies, products and services. The OpenVoB membership is composed of leading telecom, cable, and wireless broadband network developers working together to eliminate obstacles to the deployment of voice over broadband solutions. The organization is focused on achieving interoperability models that support the world's leading industry standards, and enable carriers to deploy voice over broadband services using multi-vendor architectures.

"We're pleased to add Integral Access to the expanding team of industry leaders already committing their expertise and valuable engineering resources to making true cross-platform interoperability of voice over broadband a reality," said Michael Ares, OpenVoB Director. "The active participation of emerging innovators such as Integral Access -- and the wealth of design-to-deployment experience they bring -- is helping to extend the reach of the open and independent interoperability movement."

"Integral Access has conducted pioneering work on the use of the Multi Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) standard for delivering integrated broadband services, including voice, over IP-based access networks to business and residential customers. The Company is a founding member of the MPLS forum, an industry-wide association whose mission is to accelerate interoperability and deployment of MPLS and its associated technologies. Its packet-based integrated access platform, PurePacket, uses an MPLS-based architecture to guarantee quality of service for broadband voice and data traffic.

"The Open VoB Group will play an important role in helping facilitate the deployment of voice services over new broadband infrastructures," said Jack Cicon, president and CEO, Integral Access. "We look forward to working with the other OpenVoB members, and sharing our access network expertise, to help ensure inter-operability between the various technologies and platforms required to build broadband networks that can support integrated voice services."

About PurePacket

The PurePacket platform allows network operators to cost-effectively provide business and residential customers with a comprehensive range of voice and broadband data services including high speed Internet access, LAN interconnect and PBX networking. This complete IP-based access network solution is composed of customer located PurePacketOUTburst ® IADs, carrier network PurePacketNode™ aggregation devices, and the PurePacketOMS™™ operations management system for network control and services management. To guarantee QoS, enable Class of Service (CoS), and maximize the traffic carrying capacity of access networks, PurePacket uses an MPLS-based architecture to route, transport and switch voice and data transmissions in packet format.

About Integral Access

Integral Access, Inc. provides multi-service packet-based access systems that enable carriers to offer differentiated services and combine voice/data on new generation IP-based networks as well as traditional circuit switched infrastructures. The company offers a complete MPLS-based access network solution, which includes customer premise equipment, central office aggregation devices, and an operations management system for network control and services management. Integral Access is based in Chelmsford, Massachusetts and is privately held. To contact Integral Access call +1-978-256-8833, visit us on the Web at http://www.integralaccess.com, or write to info@integralaccess.com.

Note to editors: PurePacket, PurePacketNode and PurePacketOMS™ are trademarks of Integral Access, Inc. PurePacketOUTburst and the Integral Access logo are registered trademarks of Integral Access, Inc.