New 3Com Voice and Data Networking Products and
Services Build Practical, Ethernet Converged Networks
for Small and Medium Enterprises
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 5,
1999--Extending its leadership in the small and medium enterprise
market, 3Com(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: COMS) today announced
new voice and data networking products and services that build
converged Ethernet networking infrastructures and deliver emerging
applications for e-Business, such as call centers and customer care
programs. With new 3Com(R) standard Ethernet and LAN
telephony solutions, small and medium enterprises can deploy
cost-effective desktop-to-WAN converged networks.
Also announced today is a new 90-day phone customer support
program for new SuperStack(R) and OfficeConnect(R) products
worldwide and ISDN SOHO router test accolades from The Tolly
Group.
"3Com pioneered and continues to set the standard for networking
products that are easy-to-use and highly reliable for small and
medium enterprises," said Karen Oddey, vice president, marketing
for 3Com Small and Medium Enterprises. "Using standard Ethernet
implementations, 3Com is the only vendor able to deliver
comprehensive converged networking solutions for growing
businesses. Today's SuperStack, OfficeConnect and NBX(R)
announcements reinforce 3Com leads in helping small and medium
businesses benefit from today's and tomorrow's networked
economy."
3Com Leads in Small and Medium Enterprise Converged Networking
Through 3Com's recent acquisition of NBX Corporation, Andover,
Mass., 3Com now offers a complete suite of affordable LAN,
WAN and telephone networking solutions. Small and growing
businesses around the world can now turn to one vendor for these
converged network solutions.
The NBX acquisition complements 3Com's long-standing
relationship with Siemens and the recent formation of its joint
venture. With Siemens, 3Com delivers and is developing
networking infrastructure equipment to support sophisticated
converged data and telephony networking in growing medium and
large enterprises.
New Small and Medium Enterprise Solutions
With standard Ethernet infrastructures and support for new Ethernet
802.1p/Q LAN traffic prioritization implementations, 3Com can
deliver today's Ethernet-based data and voice networks for small
and medium enterprises. Based on number of users and specific
applications, small and growing businesses can deploy 3Com's
comprehensive solutions, including 3Com EtherLink(R) network
interface cards (NICs) with DynamicAccess(R), OfficeConnect and
SuperStack hubs, switches, routers and remote access products and
NBX LAN telephony communications systems.
3Com highlights the following new products and solutions available
in its small and medium enterprise product portfolio.
-- NBX 100 Communications System now ships with support for H.323
for open, standards-based VoIP, as well as dynamic support for
Layer 2 and Layer 3 technologies enabling LAN telephony support
throughout entire IP networks. The NBX 100 system helps growing
enterprises save communications costs by combining voice and data
networks over pervasive Ethernet.
-- OfficeConnect Switch 800 and 1600 are new 8- and 16-port 10/100
per port auto sensing Ethernet switches for simple, high-speed
connections between servers and high-bandwidth network users. The
OfficeConnect 800 and 1600 dual-speed switches add performance
for less than $50 (USD) per port to support new e-Business
solutions based on shared Internet access, database management
and high-bandwidth applications such as multimedia and
videoconferencing.
-- SuperStack II Remote Access 1500 Expansion Unit gives the 1500
system 24 analog or ISDN ports for added scalability, stacking
capability for easy single-stack management and FireWire(TM)
technology for optimal remote access performance. Growing
enterprises can now scale to add more users to the SuperStack II
Remote Access 1500 unit while managing the system via SNMP as a
single entity.
-- OfficeConnect 56K and ISDN LAN Modems now support 25 users and
have enhanced IntelligentNAT (Network Address Translation)
capabilities so offices can share a single ISP address and shield
the router-attached workstations from the public Internet. Small
businesses or branch offices with up-to 25 users can easily and
cost-effectively access the corporate network or the Internet and
deploy sophisticated multimedia applications via 3Com's
IntelligentNAT.
New 3Com 90-Day Free Customer Service Program for Small and
Medium Enterprises
3Com has taken another step to ensure a complete solution for its
small and medium enterprise customers. Because the company
realizes its customers' need for immediate and cost-effective
support, 3Com's OfficeConnect and SuperStack II product lines
sold worldwide now come with telephone support for 90 days from
the date of purchase. This 90 days of complementary telephone
support supplements the standard 3Com Limited Warranty for
hardware and software and the company will continue to honor
lifetime telephone support currently offered on some products in the
OfficeConnect and SuperStack families.
With this new value-added service offering, 3Com helps ensure
customer needs during the critical installation period are addressed
in a timely and convenient manner. Telephone technical support may
include assistance with installation, product specific configuration
and identification of equipment problems. 3Com also provides
immediate access to electronic product support on the 3Com Web
site via its Knowledgebase Web service located at
knowledgebase.3com.com. This interactive tool is a definitive
source of the most current 3Com product information.
New Third-Party Validation Confirms 3Com's Leadership
The Tolly Group, an independent testing and strategic consulting
organization based in Manasquan, NJ, recently completed rigorous
competitive testing of 3Com's OfficeConnect ISDN LAN Modem
and similar products from Cisco Systems, Lucent/Ascend, Nortel
Networks and Ramp Networks. The Tolly Group tests verified:
-- Of the ISDN routers tested, the 3Com OfficeConnectLAN Modem's GUI
provides the fastest setup time because it requires the fewest
number of configuration steps;
-- The 3Com OfficeConnect LAN Modem was the only ISDN router tested
that supported multiple, simultaneous videoconferencing sessions
using Microsoft NetMeeting and CU-See me;
-- The 3Com OfficeConnect LAN Modem's throughput improved up to 80%
with compression enabled when forwarding text traffic, and;
-- No degradation using the LAN Modem with data compression enabled
while transferring previously compressed files over an ISDN link.
In addition, leading research firm PC DATA, Reston, Virginia,
reports the OfficeConnect ISDN LAN Modem was the number one
selling ISDN router in the U.S. retail channels in 1998. The
OfficeConnect ISDN LAN Modem was the preferred small office
ISDN router solution in the retail channel every quarter in 1998,
culminating an overall 27 percent market share for the calendar year
1998.
3Com remains a leader in overall Ethernet connectivity worldwide
with 35 percent market share. In the fourth quarter 1998, 3Com
achieved 35 percent market share by combining a leading 49 percent
unit market share in the worldwide Ethernet network interface card
(NIC) market (Cahners In-Stat Group) with that of all other Ethernet
products (Dell'Oro Group LAN hubs, LAN switches and wide area
routers with Ethernet ports).
About 3Com Corporation
With more than 200 million customers worldwide, 3Com
Corporation connects more people to information in more ways than
any other networking company. 3Com delivers innovative
information access products and network system solutions to large,
medium and small enterprises; carriers and network service
providers; PC OEMs; and consumers. 3Com -- More
connected.(TM) For further information, visit 3Com's World Wide
Web site at www.3com.com or the press site at
www.3com.com/pressbox.
Note to Editors: 3Com, EtherLink, DynamicAccess, OfficeConnect,
NBX and SuperStack are registered trademarks and More connected
and FireWire are trademarks of 3Com Corporation. All other
company and product names may be trademarks of the respective
companies with which they are associated.
CONTACT: 3Com Public Relations
Karin Bakis, 508/323-1562
karin_bakis@3com.com
or
The Weber Group
Rebecca Behenna, 617/520-7057
rbehenna@webergroup.com
o~~~ O |
