NEW YORK, May 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Bay Networks (NYSE:BAY), Cirrus Logic
(NASDAQ:CRUS), General DataComm and NewCom (NASDAQ:NWCM) today announced
commitment to the V.90 Work Group, an association of leading communications
companies dedicated to insuring true interoperability between V.90 products.
Early testing amongst top client and server communications companies has
revealed high performance interoperability is not automatic between differing
V.90 implementations.  In an effort to bring V.90 technology to consumers in
the most efficient and least confusing manner, this group which also includes
Ascend Communications, Cisco Systems and Hayes Corporation (NASDAQ:HAYZ),
will work together to establish total interoperability between major modem and
server providers.
    The V.90 standard was determined February 6, 1998 by the International
Telecommunications Union (ITU).  Final adoption and ratification of the
standard is expected to occur in September 1998.  While the newly determined
standard provides very specific methods and techniques for communicating at up
to 56K, differences might exist within each company's V.90 implementation,
preventing performance that exceeds the current K56flex(TM) and x2(TM) 56K
technologies.  To prevent such problems from affecting end users, the V.90
Work Group was formed to insure interoperability testing is completed and
robust performance is documented between major brands.
    Each company within the Work Group is responsible for determining when
true interoperability is achieved and its individual products can be released.
Members are also free to respond to market pressures, in a responsible manner,
through the release of product with limited V.90 interoperability.
    "Bay Networks has always taken a position of providing standards-based
solutions to our customers and sees a truly interoperable V.90 standard as
critical to the simplified flow of information that is Bay Networks'
hallmark," said Jeff Wolf, Product Manager for Signal Processing Products, Bay
Networks.  "Bay Networks is actively supporting this interoperability by
working with our customers to help them with the migration to V.90, while
continuing to develop the software to ensure that x2, K56flex and V.90
interoperate efficiently at the highest possible speeds."
    "As an early ITU technical advisor in developing the V.90 standard, we
have taken a proactive role in supporting interoperability testing," said Karl
Nordling, vice president of modem engineering at Cirrus Logic.  "Our
relationship with the V.90 Work Group reinforces our commitment to efforts
that enable proprietary 56K and V.90 modem implementations to communicate
seamlessly."
    Charles P. Johnson, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General
DataComm, Inc., said, "We at General DataComm are looking forward to
contributing to the V.90 Work Group. Our customers --- which include telephone
companies throughout the world, many Fortune 1000 companies, and our
technology licensees --- have high standards for interoperability and
performance.  General DataComm is committed to meeting these standards."
Johnson continued, "It is in the interests of everyone in the industry to have
a forum like the V.90 Work Group, so that potential equipment interoperability
issues can be discovered and resolved before they impact the systems of end
users."
    "The reason standards boards like the ITU set or determine standards is to
allow consumers to buy products that interoperate with correlative products on
the market," said Ron Howard, CEO of Hayes.  "Hayes and other Work Group
participants are committed to assuring our existing K56flex and x2 products
are interoperable using V.90.  Any company releasing 'so-called V.90' products
before interoperability exists, without clearly stating its limitations, would
be doing a great disservice to end users."
    "NewCom is committed to selling communications products that interoperate
with all applicable industry standards," said David Harralson, NewCom's Vice
President of Engineering.  "To this end, NewCom supports the aims and goals of
the V.90 work group to ensure true V.90 interoperability and compatibility."
    The Work Group is open to all communications companies.  For further
information about the V.90 Work Group, contact Bill Taylor, Vice President of
Marketing, Hayes Corporation at (770) 840-9200, x 6341 or btaylor@hayes.com.
    Ascend Communications, Inc. develops, manufactures, sells and services
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 send e-mail to info@ascend.com.
    Bay Networks, Inc. is a leader in the worldwide networking market,
providing a complete line of products that serve corporate enterprises,
service providers and telecommunications carriers. The company offers frame
and ATM switches, routers, shared media, remote and Internet access solutions,
IP services and network management applications, all integrated by Bay
Networks' Adaptive Networking strategy. With headquarters in Santa Clara,
California, Bay Networks markets its products and services around the world,
providing 7x24 support coverage. For additional information, visit the
company's World Wide Web site at baynetworks.com or call
800-8-BAYNET.
    Cirrus Logic is a premier supplier of system-level integrated circuits
that demand high-performance mixed-signal processing. The company applies its
system expertise to enable high-volume applications in data storage,
networking, and multimedia for both computing and consumer electronics markets
as well as ultra-precision data acquisition applications for industrial
automation and instrumentation markets. For more information about Cirrus
Logic, visit the company's web site at cirrus.com
    GDC (http://www.gdc.com) is an acknowledged leader in the design,
development, and manufacture of multiservice communications systems for
service providers and enterprise businesses. It owns an extensive portfolio of
patents, particularly in the area of analog modem technology, as a result of
thirty years of pioneering in the industry. The company has been an active
participant in all of the major modem standards committees, including the
EIA/TIA (United States) and the ITU-T (International). General DataComm's
innovative COLOSSAS(TM) architecture includes the flagship STROBOS(TM) and GDC
APEX(R) multiservice switching platforms, used extensively within the world's
largest public ATM Wide Area Networks, and a broad range of Advanced Network
Access products to provide integrated E1, T1, IDSL, and HDSL access to public
and private networks, all managed under a distributed, open network management
framework, ProSphere(TM).  GDC is headquartered in Connecticut, USA, and has
an extensive network of subsidiaries and partners located throughout North
America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific Rim.
    Headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc., a
wholly owned subsidiary of Hayes Corporation, a publicly-traded company,
markets its ULTRA(TM), ACCURA(TM), OPTIMA(TM), Practical Peripherals(TM),
Cardinal(TM) and CENTURY(TM) brands of analog, digital and cable modems,
remote access servers and terminal adapters along with Smartcom(TM)
communications software worldwide.  Today, with distributors in more than 45
countries, it is one of the largest manufacturers of modems in the world.  For
more information about Hayes and the company's award-winning products, visit
the Hayes Web site at hayes.com.
    Founded in 1994 as a subsidiary of Aura Systems, Inc., NewCom, now a
publicly held company has quickly emerged as a leader in the development,
manufacturing and marketing of leading-edge communications products for the
personal computer market.  Headquarted in Westlake Village, CA, NewCom designs
high-speed V.90 data/fax modems compliant with both the x2 and K56flex
protocols, an internet set-top appliance (WebPala), the e-Cama for video e-
mail communication, and other innovative products the world depends on for the
efficient flow of information.  For more information about NewCom, call (818)
597-3200 or visit their web site at newcominc.com.
    K56Flex is a trademark of Lucent Technologies, Inc. and Rockwell
International Corporation.  x2 is a trademark of U.S. Robotics.  Other
trademarks are trademarks of their respective companies.
    "Safe Harbor" statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995: This release contains forward looking statements that are subject to
risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the impact of
competitive products and pricing, product demand and market acceptance, new
product development, reliance on key strategic alliances, availability of raw
materials, the regulatory environment, fluctuations in operating results and
other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.