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Technology Stocks : Ascend Communications-News Only!!! (ASND) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: djane who wrote (1285)	3/14/1998 1:28:00 AM
From: Tech97	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1629

UUNET Enhances DSL Service Revised Copyright c 1998 TeleChoice, Inc. March 13, 1998 -- UUNET Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of WorldCom, Inc. announced Preferred Access 768, a new dedicated Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL) service with 768 Kbps bandwidth. Preferred Access 768 builds on UUNET's previously released Preferred Access 128 service by offering six times the speed and capacity. Preferred Access services use standard copper wires to bypass congested switched voice networks and eliminate ISDN installation hassles. The Preferred Access 768 service supplies bi-directional 768 Kbps bandwidth for Internet access. At this speed, a color graphic that would take one minute to download from a website via a 128 Kbps connection would take only 10 seconds to download. Similarly, a connection that supports 10 users simultaneously with 128 Kbps can support 60 concurrent users with 768 Kbps. All Preferred Access services deliver the performance of a dedicated connection at about half the price of a T1 line. Such price and performance attributes make the service affordable and accessible for small and medium-sized businesses. Current Preferred Access 128 customers can upgrade to Preferred Access 768. By simply switching the customer premise router, customers can immediately utilize the higher 768 Kbps bandwidth. Unlike many other DSL offerings, Preferred Access 768 is a fully integrated Internet access solution with end-to-end service. In addition to supplying a DSL access circuit, UUNET provides comprehensive Internet connectivity and related services, enabling businesses to obtain everything they need from a single vendor. Preferred Access 768 includes DNS registration, 20 POP e-mail accounts, and five NNTP news readers. In addition, customers receive 24 x 7 monitoring, proactive troubleshooting and UUNET's business-class customer support. Installation coordination, including local loop provisioning, is also handled by UUNET. Pricing and Availability Preferred Access 768 is available immediately in New York City and Silicon Valley. The service will expand to all 54 of UUNET's existing U.S. DSL PoPs -- the largest number provided by any ISP -- by the summer of 1998. Pricing for Preferred Access 768 ranges from $650 to $1400 per month, with no term commitment. Pricing is based on usage. Customers receive a five percent discount for a one-year term commitment and a 10 percent discount for a two-year commitment. Local access charges range from $150 to $250 per month, depending on geographic location. The customer premise equipment (CPE) cost is $399 for Preferred Access 768. As an introductory promotion, customers who sign up for one year or longer-term commitments will receive the lowest tier price ($650) for the first six months, regardless of usage. In addition, installation is reduced by 50 percent to $1500 and there is no charge for the CPE. TeleChoice Take: UUNET is strengthening its position in the SDSL space with this upgraded offering aimed at small to medium sized businesses. This offering replaces their previous Ascend-based 128K service which UUNET announced with a lot of fanfare, claiming they were the first nationwide carrier to deploy this type of service. Distinguishing attributes include a fully integrated (one-stop shop) solution that is non-oversubscribed. Price ranges are positioned to protect their current T-1 customer base by capping the burst capability at 768K ($1,400). This compares to traditional IXC and local T-1 services at 2x and 3x the monthly recurring price points respectively. US WEST found in its deployment experience that no one wanted 128Kbps, so this is not surprising to TeleChoice. The SDSL offerings go after the true fractional service speeds where there is a lot of expense in trying to maintain connectivity with offices at sub-T1 speeds. Expect more of these speeds from the national providers. The additional value-adds (ie; Internet connectivity, domain name registration, 24x7 customer care, etc.) along with the outlined promotion should attract both current P.A. 128K and new small and medium sized customers in the coverage areas they plan to service. UUNET has the client base to really push DSL -- wrapped with all sorts of applications. UUNET and US WEST remain the ones to watch right now for pushing national DSL deployment in the U.S. Deployment of IDSL and SDSL are often based more on the realities of managing ILEC spectral compatibility issues than on the ability of the technology to support the customers' applications. This is what CLECs have to do to get their services rolled out. As for the appeal of IDSL offerings, who wants 128K at $700/mo.? There is a market for 128K if it is priced and positioned appropriately. It needs to be marketed for the value it provides to customers and not as a way to splash into the DSL market.

To: djane who wrote (1285)	3/14/1998 11:29:00 AM
From: Tech97	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1629

endors Add Heft To DSL Offerings By Salvatore Salamone IT managers looking for business-class digital subscriber line services got another service option and a glimpse of things to come last week. Ascend Communications Inc., Paradyne and WaiLAN Communications Inc. unveiled DSL products aimed at improving bandwidth delivery. And Uunet Technologies Inc. introduced a new DSL service. The announcements by the equipment companies are expressly aimed at LAN users in small- to medium-sized offices. "Most business applications require some form of end-to-end traffic control," said William Jacobson, a broadband consultant at Internet consulting company Pinnacle Research Inc. "That's not something that's been addressed much in the DSL world." To that end, Paradyne announced it is adding Layer 2 virtual LAN (VLAN) support to its Hotwire line of rate-adaptive DSL (RADSL) products. Layer 2 support brings several benefits to carriers and end users. For carriers, Layer 2 support simplifies central office operations. According to industry experts, many carriers do not typically support Layer 3 routing in their central offices, and for some applications this has forced them to handle IP addressing within the central office. The Layer 2 approach requires only one IP address to manage a DSL access multiplexer and its attached modems. Paradyne's Layer 2 support includes a learning bridge that automatically maps a Media Access Control address to the appropriate RADSL line. This feature provides a layer of security that is lacking in many DSL implementations. Since data is sent only to a user's RADSL line, others sharing a DSL access multiplexer do not have access to that data. Layer 2 support also is in Ascend's plans. Last week, the company announced that its DSLTNT central office concentrators now support Layer 2 multiplexing using frame relay over xDSL. Layer 2 multiplexing will let service providers offer multiprotocol DSL transport for services like virtual private networking without forcing carriers to deal with IP addresses in their central offices. Also last week, WaiLAN unveiled WaiDSL, which will serve as the basis for a line of LAN connectivity products that support symmetrical transmissions at 7 Mbps. Uunet last week announced Preferred Access 768, a symmetrical DSL service that builds on its existing Preferred 128 service. The service gives users 768-Kbps transmission rates to and from a Uunet point of presence (POP). The service is available now in New York City and Silicon Valley, and will be rolled out to 54 POPs this spring. Essentially, "it will be available up and down the East and West Coasts," said Alan Taffel, vice president of marketing and business development at Uunet. Copyright (c) 1998 CMP Media Inc.

To: djane who wrote (1285)	3/18/1998
From: djane	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 1629

After-the-bell positive mention of ASND in thestreet.com article JP Morgan analyst says ASND expects to meet the quarter thestreet.com Excerpt: "As for Ascend, a company spokesman says the company can fill its own gaps. "We have our own security products" that already address the inevitable chinks in the armor of routers, says an Ascend spokesman. And the company expects to meet profit expectations this quarter, according to analyst William Rabin at J.P. Morgan. Rabin added that several carriers raved about Ascend's asynchronous transfer mode products at a J.P. Morgan conference in Dana Point, Calif. last week." Top Stories: Internet Security Systems IPO Approaches With Anticipation By Kevin Petrie Staff Reporter 3/17/98 4:46 PM ET For Internet Security Systems, paranoia spells opportunity. Case in point: Shareholders fled Ascend (ASND:Nasdaq) stock Monday afternoon the moment word surfaced that some of the company's products have security holes. Addressing the problem on Tuesday, Ascend said that simple measures can patch whatever holes might exist, but in afternoon trading shares still wallowed at 33 13/16, down 1 3/16. Scares like the one Ascend is facing make Wall Street more fond of Internet Security Systems, or ISS Group, which is slated to go public March 24. Recent enthusiasm for Internet security offerings has helped boost interest in the ISS offering. On March 2, the company expanded the size of its offering to 3.0 million shares from 2.5 million shares. The offering's expected range is $14 to $16 per share. ISS software products detect both intruders and soft spots, alerting companies to potential problems with their Internet boxes -- and that includes the alleged problems found with Ascend gear. But, as with most good ideas involving network equipment, ISS faces stiff competition: the ubiquitous Cisco (CSCO:Nasdaq). Cisco recently acquired WheelGroup, a closely held rival of ISS. ISS backers, however, are not deterred. The Internet security concern has a good lead on WheelGroup, and its recent revenue record is robust. In addition, many Wall Streeters believe that ISS could quickly become an attractive target. Along with Cisco's recent purchase, Network Associates (NETA:Nasdaq) said it will purchase Trusted Information Systems (TISX:Nasdaq), or TIS. "I don't think competing with Cisco is a problem right now," says analyst Matthew Kovar at the Yankee Group research firm. ISS has pushed product into the channel rapidly. Its software likely will prove compatible with more corporate systems. And players don't need to compete on price for now, because corporations will pay up for the peace of mind. Officials at WheelGroup and TIS could not be reached for comment. Citing an SEC-enforced quiet period, ISS simply released a statement. "We were first -- the market pioneer in security assessment and intrusion detection" for systems including Windows NT and UNIX. "The need for ISS to remain focused on this core market niche is key to our success." "This space is primed to grow pretty quickly," says Paul Cook, co-manager of the Munder NetNet fund, a small Internet-focused portfolio. He estimates that ISS' market segment will grow revenue at 50% annually for the near term. Cook is mulling whether to invest in ISS after listening to two recent conference calls that were keyed to the IPO. Already his firm owns shares of Axent (AXNT:Nasdaq), another ISS rival. Cook says ISS leads a new breed of security firms whose software studies the full range of network connections for soft spots. Previously, security concerns focused on single network sections, but that piecemeal approach has grown less effective as hackers devise new ways of worming past conventional firewalls. The price tag isn't bad, Cook says, adding that the suggested market cap is roughly nine times the revenue expected for 1998. To be sure, ISS will command a premium. The suggested offering price values ISS at 17 to 19 times 1997 revenue -- the high end of the range for its group. TIS will sell to Network Associates for roughly 7 or 8 times trailing revenue; Axent now trades at about 13 times revenue. Privately held Wheelgroup is going to Cisco for 16 to 18 times revenue, using a published report of $7 million in 1997 sales. Marquee names dot ISS' prospectus. Goldman Sachs is lead underwriter. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, arguably the richest venture capital spring in Silicon Valley, will own nearly 9% of ISS stock after the offering. Over 16% will fall in the hands of Greylock, which invested in the recent IPO success DoubleClick (DCLK:Nasdaq). Goldman said Tuesday that the IPO will be priced the evening of Mar. 23. With 16.4 million shares outstanding, the offering would value ISS at $229 million to $262 million. Wall Street shouldn't hold its breath for earnings. In the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, ISS grew revenue to $5.1 million from $2.2 million one year earlier (most revenue comes from licenses). The net loss widened to $1.9 million from $222,000 in the year-ago period. The company expects to post losses for the foreseeable future. As for Ascend, a company spokesman says the company can fill its own gaps. "We have our own security products" that already address the inevitable chinks in the armor of routers, says an Ascend spokesman. And the company expects to meet profit expectations this quarter, according to analyst William Rabin at J.P. Morgan. Rabin added that several carriers raved about Ascend's asynchronous transfer mode products at a J.P. Morgan conference in Dana Point, Calif. last week. See Also TOP STORIES ARCHIVE Cisco Company Quotes Ascend Company Quotes c 1998 TheStreet.com, All Rights Reserved. TOP \| ABOUT US \| CONTENTS \| SUBSCRIBE \| ADVERTISE \| TRADE ONLINE \| FEEDBACK \| SEARCH \| HELP