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Optimum Lightpath Leverages Atrica's Carrier Ethernet Systems to Deliver Metro Ethernet Services to New York Metro Area

Posted on: Monday, 16 January 2006, 09:00 CST

Innovative Service Offering Allows Organizations to Link Multiple Locations, Run Bandwidth-Intensive Applications and Converge Multiple Types of Content Over a Single Network Infrastructure

Optimum Lightpath(R), the business telecommunications services division of Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE:CVC), has deployed Atrica's Carrier Ethernet Systems in support of its Metro Ethernet service offerings in the Greater New York Metropolitan area. As the leading business broadband provider with the largest fully fiber optic network in New York State, Optimum Lightpath delivers converged, IP-based data, Internet, and voice solutions to thousands of businesses throughout Long Island, Westchester County, New York City, southern Connecticut, and northern New Jersey.

With its Metro Ethernet deployment announced earlier this year, Optimum Lightpath moved into the next era of business communications with a variety of Ethernet-based services, including the Lightpath E-Line and E-LAN Ethernet services and dedicated Internet Access via Ethernet service, all of which are delivered via a single converged network. Developed in response to requests from enterprise customers for resilient, reliable, high capacity data services, all of Optimum Lightpath's Ethernet-based offerings support flexible bandwidths and SONET-like 50ms protection, enabling mission-critical IP-based data, Internet, and voice solutions for medium and large businesses in industries such as healthcare, education and government, financial services, carriers, service providers and ISPs.

Optimum Lightpath's suite of Ethernet services provides users with high bandwidth connectivity at prices well below traditional high capacity services (DS3 and OC-n) for point-to-point or multipoint applications, such as video conferencing, off-site storage, distance learning, medical imaging and reliable Internet access. Optimum Lightpath's services provide organizations with the flexibility, cost savings and budgetary stability they need to link multiple locations, run bandwidth-intensive applications and converge multiple types of content over a single network infrastructure.

Optimum Lightpath selected Atrica's Carrier Ethernet solutions after a thorough, comprehensive evaluation of its next-generation infrastructure options. Atrica was chosen for its superior delivery of five critical functionality areas, including support of TDM traffic via Circuit Emulation, guaranteed end-to-end Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with CIR and EIR, sub-50ms resiliency, scalability of the network architecture, and carrier-class service management and provisioning, as well as its compliance with the Metro Ethernet Forum's Global Carrier Ethernet Service Definitions. Specifically, Optimum Lightpath is offering Ethernet via Atrica's Carrier Ethernet Systems which are Ethernet Private Line (EPL), Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) and E-LAN (Ethernet multipoint-to-multipoint) services compliant with the MEF 9 technical specification for such services.

Optimum Lightpath has deployed Atrica's comprehensive Carrier Ethernet product suite as one component of its service delivery infrastructure, including the A-2000 family of Carrier Ethernet Edge Switches, the A-4000 family of Carrier Ethernet Aggregation Switches and the Atrica Service Platform for Ethernet Networks (ASPEN(TM)), an integrated service provisioning and management system.

"Our customers require high-speed communications services to power their business applications and only Metro Ethernet provides them with the reliability, scalability and cost efficiency that they need," said Dave Pistacchio, executive vice president and general manager of Optimum Lightpath. "Atrica's Carrier Ethernet solutions are part of our next-generation fully fiber optic data network infrastructure that is enabling us to deliver a wide range of Metro Ethernet offerings that reduce our customers' costs, increase their productivity and improve their operational flexibility, while lowering our capital and operational expenditures."

"With this announcement, service providers can no longer doubt that manageable, reliable Carrier Ethernet equipment exists, with SLAs on which to develop and offer differentiated services," said Michael Howard, Principal Analyst for Infonetics Research. "Cablevision's Optimum Lightpath is a major provider with substantial and accelerating Ethernet service revenues in 2005, delivering end-to-end SLAs and SONET-like 50-millisecond protection over Carrier Ethernet equipment to major financial, government, medical, and education customers. Lightpath is not a test case, but a real proofpoint of the viability and innovation we can expect of Carrier Ethernet services."

"With its comprehensive Metro Ethernet service portfolio, Optimum Lightpath is leading the New York Metro market into a new generation of communications services," said Vivek Ragavan, president and CEO of Atrica. "We are proud of the role our Carrier Ethernet solutions are playing in this important service advancement, and we look forward to working with Optimum Lightpath as it expands its leadership position. This contract represents burgeoning support for Atrica's Carrier Ethernet solutions among major North American service providers."

About Optimum Lightpath

Optimum Lightpath, a business telecommunications services division of Cablevision Systems Corporation, uses the power of its own reliable and resilient fully fiber optic network to deliver converged, IP-based data, Internet, and voice solutions to businesses throughout the New York metropolitan area. Over the past 17 years, Optimum Lightpath built an advanced Fiber-to-the-business-Premises network that has over 2400 route miles of fiber optic cables throughout the tri-state area. As a result of owning and maintaining this state-of-the-art network, Optimum Lightpath can better ensure the enterprise customer's quality of experience, while delivering reliable, high bandwidth business communications services at lower prices. Optimum Lightpath now provides its customers with scalable, high-capacity IP-based Metro Ethernet services (E-LAN and E-Line) to support high bandwidth data, Internet and voice applications, while also delivering highly personalized customer service unparalleled by traditional phone companies.

About Cablevision

Cablevision Systems Corporation is one of the nation's leading entertainment and telecommunications companies. Its cable television operations serve 3 million households in the New York metropolitan area. The company's advanced telecommunications offerings include its iO: Interactive Optimum digital television, Optimum Online high-speed Internet, Optimum Voice digital voice-over-cable, and its Optimum Lightpath integrated business communications services. Cablevision's Rainbow Media Holdings LLC operates several successful programming businesses, including AMC, IFC, WE and other national and regional networks. In addition to its telecommunications and programming businesses, Cablevision owns Madison Square Garden and its sports teams, the New York Knicks, Rangers and Liberty. The company also operates New York's famed Radio City Music Hall, and owns and operates Clearview Cinemas.

About Atrica

A technology visionary and industry pioneer, Atrica provides a full range of Carrier Ethernet transport solutions to service providers delivering Metro Ethernet services. Atrica's Carrier Ethernet product suite combines the benefits of Ethernet technology -- including its low-cost, proven scalability, ease of management, and ubiquity in the enterprise market -- with innovations in traffic engineering, service management and scalability to meet the stringent demands of next-generation transport networks. With Atrica's Carrier Ethernet solutions, service providers can deliver the ultimate broadband triple play services experience to their business and residential customers over a single universal transport network, with guaranteed SLAs, sub-50ms network-wide resiliency, TDM traffic support, and point-and-click, centralized OAM&P. Privately held, Atrica is based in Santa Clara, Calif., with R&D facilities in Israel and the Untied States and business development and sales offices throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company has received over $134 million in funding to date, from world-class venture capital firms, industry leaders, and seven global service providers. For more information, visit Atrica on the Web at www.atrica.com.

Atrica, ASPEN and The Carrier Ethernet Company are registered trademarks and trademarks of Atrica Inc. or its affiliated companies in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Source: Business Wire

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