Leading Fiber-to-the-Premises Service Providers Turn to General Bandwidth for Packet Voice Services

Austin, TX – October 7, 2003 – General Bandwidth, a leading telecommunications equipment provider enabling carriers to deliver enhanced voice services over broadband networks, announced its participation in several of the leading Fiber-to-the-Premises (FTTP) deployments in North America. The G6 platform is the voice solution of choice for leading FTTP service providers including Bristol Utilities, Chelan County Public Utility District (PUD), Dalton Utilities, Hancock Telecom, Rochester Telephone Company, and FCI Broadband.

General Bandwidth's G6® Packet Telephony Migration Platform, with its support for voice over IP and ATM networks, delivers high quality, full-featured voice services over any Fiber-to-the-Premises architecture including ATM-based passive optical networks (BPON) or IP-based active fiber (FTTX) networks. With the capability to simultaneously support voice services from existing class 5 switches as well as next generation softswitches and feature servers, the G6 platform delivers a migration platform from which new voice and media features can be deployed.

According to Michael Howard, principal analyst at Infonetics Research, "Customers served by Fiber-to-the-Premises technologies will expand rapidly, supported by worldwide PON equipment sales growing at a compound annual growth rate of 59% through 2006. Service providers want to offer their customers a "triple play" bundle of services that includes voice, high definition television, video-on-demand, and high-speed data services. Telecom service providers as well as municipalities and utility companies are initiating field trials and deployments throughout the U.S. to ensure they have the most competitive "last mile" broadband network."

General Bandwidth has partnered with the leading FTTP equipment manufacturers to deliver a complete, turnkey voice/video/data solution where voice services are seamlessly supported across the fiber network.

“In addition to recent FCC changes freeing ILECs to build FTTP networks, service providers of all types are realizing the tremendous operational savings and growth potential of FTTP. General Bandwidth has seen a rapidly increasing interest by all service providers to move toward higher speed fiber technologies to deliver bundled voice, video, and data to their customers,” said Brendon Mills President and CEO of General Bandwidth. “We are pleased that the G6 platform can fill such a vital role in providing the voice component of this exciting twenty first century technology which is quickly becoming the de facto standard for telecommunications in networks both large and small."

Dalton Utilities

Dalton Utilities has deployed the General Bandwidth G6 platform to deliver packet voice services to both residential and business customers in Dalton, Georgia as part of their OptiLink service, an integrated communication service of voice, video and high-speed data over an all-fiber access network . For more information about Dalton Utilities, please visit www.dutil.com

FCI Broadband

FCI Broadband, a division of Futureway Communications Inc., has deployed the G6® Packet Telephony Migration Platform in support of packet voice services over FCI Broadband's integrated voice and data “Last Mile” fiber network in the greater Toronto area. FCI Broadband is the leading service provider for Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) connections in North America. For more information about FCI Broadband, please visit www.fcibroadband.com

Rochester Telephone Company

Rochester Telephone Company (RTC) is deploying the General Bandwidth G6 platform in Northern Indiana to deliver voice over their IP-based FTTP network. The G6 platform will be an integral part of service availability to more than 8,700 subscribers in Indiana as RTC upgrades their entire access network to a fiber-based architecture. For more information about Rochester Telephone Company, please visit www.rtc1.com

Hancock Telecom

Hancock Telecom has deployed the G6 Platform to deliver voice services to new homes in subdivisions which are being served by Hancock's “Fiber-to-the-Premises” (FTTP) service offering. General Bandwidth's G6 platform is the crucial voice components in providing FTTP to more than 7,000 subscribers in Indiana. For more information about Hancock Telecom, please visit www.teamhancock.com

Bristol Virginia Utilities

Bristol Virginia Utilities, a municipally-owned system, has deployed the G6 platform to deliver voice services over their state-of-the-art, fiber-optic network which serves the City of Bristol and adjoining localities with advanced communication services. For information about Bristol Virginia Utilities, please visit www.bvub.com

Chelan County Public Utility District

Chelan County PUD signed a multi-million dollar agreement to build a new high speed, optical network in Chelan County, Washington. The G6 platform is deployed as part of a complete voice, video, and high speed data service to their customers via independent service providers. For information about Chelan County PUD, please visit www.chelanpud.org

About General Bandwidth

General Bandwidth's flagship G6® platform enables service providers to deploy voice over broadband technology to cost effectively deliver voice services and provide a migration path to end-to-end packet networks. www.genband.com

Contacts:
General Bandwidth
Tabitha Bailey
+1.805.241.2532
Tabitha.Bailey@genband.com