To: Paul Lee who wrote (5657 ) 5/5/1998 11:36:00 AM From: Kenneth E. Phillipps Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 6980
From the Ascend Thread Talk : Communications : Ascend Communications (ASND) To: Terry Audette (46043 ) From: Neil Horton Tuesday, May 5 1998 9:19AM ET Reply # of 46047 Intel and FORE Bridge the Gap Between Ethernet and ATM Technology Leaders Team to Help Deliver Best-in-Class, End-to-End Solutions LAS VEGAS, May 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Intel Corporation (Nasdaq: INTC - news; INTC), a leader in Fast Ethernet technology, and FORE Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORE - news), a leading ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) provider, will announce an alliance and unveil their strategy to provide integrated Ethernet and ATM networking solutions for enterprise customers at a press conference today at the Networld+Interop tradeshow. Together the two companies plan to create technology and will work to enhance industry specifications that help deliver the combined benefits of ATM and Ethernet technology for products that deliver the quality, scalability, price and performance demanded by enterprise customers. The agreement between Intel and FORE extends beyond joint development of solutions to include some joint marketing and sales efforts designed to provide best-in-class service. ''Enterprise customers should not be forced to choose between Ethernet and ATM when what they really need are both. These customers have complex needs that require a balanced solution which helps seamlessly integrate both technologies across their networks,'' said Frank Gill, Intel executive vice president and general manager, Intel's Small Business and Networking Group. ATM and Ethernet both offer distinct advantages. The decision when and where to implement ATM and Ethernet is dependent upon both the size of the network and the application requirements. ATM helps provide network reliability and scalability for larger companies utilizing a multi-service Intelligent Infrastructure(TM) to prioritize traffic and help reduce operational costs by consolidating voice, video and data simultaneously. Ethernet provides the affordability and ease of use, which is most critical in workgroups or smaller networking environments. The ideal solution is one that has the ability to incorporate both technologies and the ability to evolve with a company's business needs. The Intel and FORE alliance will integrate these two technologies, which have historically been mistakenly considered to be competing technologies, into a comprehensive solution, which yields the benefits of both Ethernet and ATM. The first result of this agreement is the FORE ES-2810 Switch which incorporates Intel's Fast Ethernet switching technology. The ES-2810, which is being demonstrated at Networld+Interop in FORE Systems' booth, No. 3643, will be available in June. Future products for Intel's customers will include an ATM Interface for the Intel(R) Express 500 Series of scalable, stackable switches. Further, FORE and Intel plan to work together to jointly deliver combined end-to-end Quality of Service and distributed routing solutions for multiple segments, from the home to the enterprise, at both ends of the wire. ''FORE and Intel are uniquely positioned to deliver the best of both ATM and Ethernet, which will help create an integrated, end-to-end solution,'' said Thomas J. Gill, president and CEO of FORE Systems, Inc. ''Our goal is to provide balanced computing across an Intelligent Infrastructure offering comprehensive solutions that give our enterprise customers a clear competitive advantage.'' Regards neil