PSINet Adds 50,000 High-Speed Ascend Modems
biz.yahoo.com
Tuesday March 31, 4:02 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: PSINet Inc.
PSINet Adds 50,000 High-Speed Ascend Modems
Ascend Communications MAX TNT Modems to Support ISDN and 56K PSINet Internet Connections
throughout North America and Europe
HERNDON, Va., March 31 /PRNewswire/ -- PSINet Inc. (Nasdaq: PSIX - news) announced today that it has purchased 50,000
MAX TNT modems from Ascend Communications (Nasdaq: ASND - news), to be deployed primarily in its existing
points-of-presence (POPs) in Canada, United States, and across Europe. All modems support both ISDN and 56K standard
connections and will be deployed throughout the PSINet Internet-optimized network during the next two quarters.
''Demand for PSINet dialup services in Europe is extraordinary,'' said Volker Kleinn, president and chief executive officer of PSINet
Europe, based in Switzerland. ''Commercial connections in the UK and Germany, where PSINet has 100% country-wide coverage
with a local calling number, has never been stronger.'' Kleinn is responsible for operating subsidiaries in seven European countries, all of
which will add more ascend modems.
''The demand in the United States and Canada by our commercial customers for dial-up access continues to grow across all sectors of
our business,'' said Jack Chidester, PSINet's senior vice president for US sales and marketing. Chidester is responsible for three
U.S.-based product divisions: Corporate Network Services, Carrier and ISP Services, and Web and Application Services. ''The
widest demand for our high-speed modems is in our Carrier and ISP Services group, which supports U.S. domestic ISPs and carries
the traffic of hundreds of thousands of consumer users.''
Most of the MAX TNTs will be deployed in large metropolitan areas where competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) continue to
provide relatively easy access to circuits for PSINet's large ISDN modem banks. ''Our most successful ISP and Carrier customers
include EarthLink Networks (Nasdaq: ELNK - news), WebTV, a unit of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq: MSFT - news), and IXC
Communications (Nasdaq: IIXC - news),'' said John Kraft, vice president for the Carrier and ISP Services business unit.
''We continue to add circuits and modems to actively support these demanding and successful customers. Our goal is to facilitate
connectivity and access to our high-throughput OC-48 backbone in a cost-effective manner so these customers can sustain manageable
growth within their businesses,'' Kraft added.
An essential part of PSINet's business is to manage timely modem deployment. The Ascend agreement is an integral part of the overall
strategy, however, another important factor in the equation is last-mile primary-rate interface (PRI) deployment -- typically handled by
PSINet third-party partners. Healthy competition between RBOCs and CLECs in this market is increasing quality while also decreasing
cost and time requirements for PSINet to activate new modems. Combining PSINet's Internet expertise and OC-48 resources with
existing CLEC metropolitan access capabilities presents a unique alternative for PSINet Carrier and ISP customers.
Fundamental to PSINet's delivery of industry-leading wholesale Carrier and ISP Services is flexibility. PSINet offers the widest array of
value-added features such as:
The only ISP purely focused on an IP-optimized data network
Access to over 230 POPs in the US (85% coverage of continental U.S. population)
Full-time network management and monitoring that allows customers to focus on attracting and retaining customers, service
enhancements, and general business management
Flat-rate analog (non-ISDN) pricing
Complete access and authentication data giving carrier and ISP customers manageable information to create reports, invoices,
and other important marketing and finance capabilities.
Over 4000 ISPs are currently operating in the United States. The vast majority of these organizations are small or medium-sized
operations that have established local or regional market-share because of familiarity with geographical or line-of-business Internet
needs. PSINet continues to employ the most comprehensive aggregation of leading-edge connectivity technologies, robust network
development/management, and value added customer service to meet the dynamic needs of these ISPs.
About PSINet Inc.
PSINet (Nasdaq: PSIX - news) is a global facilities-based Internet Protocol (IP) data communications carrier focused on the business
marketplace. As the first and largest independent commercial Internet service provider in the world, PSINet offers a broad set of
high-speed corporate LAN connectivity services supporting managed security and guaranteed Internet, intranet, electronic commerce,
Web hosting services, and services for other carriers and ISPs. PSINet operates an international state-of-the-art frame relay-based, IP-
optimized network connecting to ISDN, ATM, SMDS, and wireless/satellite systems, serving over 33,000 corporations with over 400
points of presence extending to 10 countries.
Headquartered in Herndon, VA, PSINet has subsidiaries in Canada, Japan, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,
Switzerland, and the UK. For more information, media representatives can contact Michael Binko, APR at PSINet by telephone at
703-904-4100, or via e-mail at binkom@psi.com. General company information can be obtained by e-mail at info@psi.com, or by
accessing the Web site at psi.net.
SOURCE: PSINet Inc. |
