To: Jeffery E. Forrest who wrote (18652 ) 10/22/1997 1:14:00 PM From: Glenn D. Rudolph Respond to
BellSouth and Ascend to Co-Market Remote Access Solutions; Companies Team Up to Provide End-to-End Frame Relay and ATM Solutions to Corporate Customers
Business Wire - October 22, 1997 08:08
%ASCEND %BELLSOUTH ASND BLS %CALIFORNIA %ALABAMA %FLORIDA %GEORGIA %KENTUCKY %LOUISIANA %MISSISSIPPI %NORTH-CAROLINA %SOUTH-CAROLINA %TENNESSEE %COMED %COMPUTERS %ELECTRONICS %INTERACTIVE %MULTIMEDIA %INTERNET %TELECOMMUNICATIONS %UTILITIES V%BW P%BW
ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 22, 1997--BellSouth and Ascend Communications, Inc.(NASDAQ:ASND) today announced that the two companies have entered into a co-marketing agreement to provide remote access and WAN switching solutions to corporate and ISP customers. The agreement covers all of Ascend's products, in particular the company's Frame Relay, ISDN and ATM offerings.
BellSouth's Network Complementary Applications Program (NCAP) is a co-marketing initiative that provides end-to-end communication solutions for large customers through alliances with specialized integrators. Under the NCAP agreement with Ascend, BellSouth account teams will identify customers who can benefit from the business solutions, equipment and professional services offered by Ascend and the network services of BellSouth. Ascend sales and engineering will team with BellSouth to develop a comprehensive communications solution for the customer.
"We have been using Ascend equipment in the core of our network for some time," said John Thacker, director of Indirect Distribution for BellSouth. "This agreement will enable us to look at the total remote networking picture, from the routers and remote concentrators at the customer site to the switches in our central office. Our customers are deploying Frame Relay and ATM services, and we want to be in a position to offer them a complete solution, not just a piece of the puzzle."
"BellSouth was one of our earliest and is one of our best customers," said Sam Mathan, vice president, carrier marketing and sales for Ascend, "and we are pleased to have the opportunity to work with them in a more strategic role, planning and deploying end-to-end remote access solutions for their customers."
Ascend Communications, Inc. develops, manufactures and sells wide area networking solutions for telecommunications carriers, Internet service providers and corporate customers worldwide. For more information about Ascend and its products, please visit the Ascend web site at www.ascend.com or e-mail info@ascend.com .
BellSouth is a $19 billion communications services company. It provides telecommunications, wireless communications, directory advertising and publishing, Internet and information services to more than 28 million customers in 20 countries worldwide. BellSouth's telecommunications operations provide service over one of the most advanced networks in the world for approximately 23 million access lines in its nine-state region that includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Visit BellSouth Corporation's web site at www.bellsouth.com .
CONTACT: BellSouth
Susan Crews, 404/927-7439
susan.d.crews@bridge.bellsouth.com
or
Ascend/Gallagher PR
Shannon Malliet, 510/747-2254
smalliet@ascend.com
