Bell Atlantic Names Ascend Supplier of Choice for ATM, Frame Relay
Infrastructure
PR Newswire - September 08, 1998 09:21
Ascend Technology to Power Company's High-Speed Data Highway
NEW YORK, Sept 8. /PRNewswire/ -- Ascend Communications, Inc.
and Bell Atlantic Network Services today announced a multi-year
contract that significantly extends the companies' existing relationship,
calling for Ascend to be the primary supplier of next generation
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Frame Relay switches for
Bell Atlantic's advanced high-speed data network. With this innovative
technology, Bell Atlantic will be quicker to market with an even larger
suite of sophisticated data products and services fueling top- line
growth, and will continue to achieve significant savings by leveraging the
purchasing power of the new Bell Atlantic.
After an extensive bidding and review process, Bell Atlantic chose
Ascend to provide B-STDX 9000 Multiservice Frame Relay WAN
switches, CBX 500 ATM Multiservice switches and GX 550 ATM
"Smart" Core switches and NavisTM network management. Ascend
switches provide high quality service and availability, as well as rapid
service management and delivery.
"Bell Atlantic is aggressively expanding our ATM and Frame Relay
capabilities to be our customers' first choice for all their data needs,"
said Lawrence T. Babbio, Jr., president and CEO, Bell Atlantic
Network Group and chairman, Global Wireless Group. "Building a
standardized delivery platform that serves our entire footprint while
driving down costs helps us accomplish this goal. Our experience with
Ascend has shown that they understand the evolution of the data
services marketplace, and that they will deliver the future products and
features we require to provide state-of-the-art data solutions."
The ATM and Frame Relay agreement with Ascend reinforces Bell
Atlantic's commitment to diversified suppliers due to Ascend's
sub-contracting program with minority and women-owned businesses,
Babbio said.
Bell Atlantic offers a rich portfolio of application-oriented, advanced
Fast Packet Data Services to meet customers' hybrid wide area
networking needs. This family includes ATM Cell Relay Services, which
provide a supercharged backbone that boosts speed and consolidates
capacity while integrating the networks of today, and Frame Relay
Services, which are particularly well suited to handle distributed
processing applications, such as client/server computing, peer-to-peer
inter-LAN connections and Internet access.
"We are thrilled to be selected as supplier of choice for Bell Atlantic's
ATM and Frame Relay network," said Mory Ejabat, Ascend
Communications' president and CEO. "Throughout a long and fruitful
relationship with Bell Atlantic, Ascend has demonstrated not only
leadership in core infrastructure technology, but a vision for where data
networking is going. We look forward to working with Bell Atlantic to
provide its customers with the most advanced data services available
today."
Bell Atlantic is at the forefront of the new communications and
information industry. With more than 41 million telephone access lines
and more than seven million wireless customers worldwide, Bell Atlantic
companies are premier providers of advanced wireline voice and data
services, market leaders in wireless services and the world's largest
publishers of directory information. Bell Atlantic companies are also
among the world's largest investors in high-growth global
communications markets, with operations and investments in 23
countries.
Ascend Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASND) 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 ascend.com or
send e-mail to info@ascend.com. Ascend is headquartered at One
Ascend Plaza, 1701 Harbor Bay Parkway, Alameda, Calif. 94502;
phone is 800-ASCEND4 and fax is 510-814-2300.
INTERNET USERS: Bell Atlantic news releases, executive speeches,
news media contacts and other useful information are available at Bell
Atlantic's News Center on the World Wide Web (http://www.ba.com).
To receive news releases by email, visit the News Center and register
for personalized automatic delivery of Bell Atlantic news releases.
SOURCE Bell Atlantic Network Services
/CONTACT: Ells Edwards of Bell Atlantic, 302-576-5340, or
ellsworth.edwards@bellatlantic.com; or Julie Asher of Alexander
Communications, 404-897-2300, or jasher@alexandercom.com; or
Todd Koch of
Ascend Communications, 510-747-2672, or todd.koch@ascend.com/
/Web site: ba.com
/Web site: ascend.com
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