WeRoam to establish seamless worldwide inter-standard roaming between W-LAN and GSM

t-net, owned by Togewa Group and holder of a VMO license in Switzerland, announced today its plans to become a mobility enabler for W-LAN and other wireless networks. The growth of W-LAN has generated the need for service providers, such as t-net, to act as agents between operators to ease the complexities of inter-standard roaming.

t-net
Toni Stadelmann
tel: 0041 (0)31 959 3232
info@weroam.com
www.weroam.com

For immediate Release

Bern, Switzerland -- 17 January 2002 - t-net, owned by Togewa Group and holder of a VMO license in Switzerland, announced today its plans to become a mobility enabler for W-LAN and other wireless networks. The growth of W-LAN has generated the need for service providers, such as t-net, to act as agents between operators to ease the complexities of inter-standard roaming.

The W-LAN market expansion has been centred around hot spots developed by various types of operators in different parts of the globe. The challenge for t-net is to enable users to move between these hotspots seamlessly and without effort," commented Toni Stadelmann, Managing Director. He went on to add, currently no inter-standard roaming is possible. It is t-nets intention to become a market leader in supplying these exciting new services."

t-nets dynamic product, WeRoam, will facilitate the seamless integration of W-LAN and GSM network technologies and enable global roaming for W-LAN users. All clearing and account settlement services for W-LAN operators will be handled by t-nets secure and reliable WeRoam product. Value added services will also be provided to supplement the roaming solution.

It is envisaged that the WeRoam services will be introduced in two stages. Roaming between W-LAN networks will be initiated first, followed by roaming from GSM/GPRS/UMTS networks into W-LAN networks and vice versa (inter-standard roaming) in the secondary stage of development.

About WeRoam - the product
WeRoam provides seamless mobility for wireless data services. Services are provided by t-net and some additional services will be provided by partners of t-net:

- Roaming management:
Worldwide coverage provided by a contractual relationship between t-net and both W-LAN and mobile operators (roaming agreements) enabling roaming between W-LAN hotspots and eventually between W-LAN and mobile Operators (GSM/GPRS/UMTS).
Data and financial clearing services (accounting) provided for both W-LAN operators and mobile operators through the use of an inter-standard billing gateway in order to enable their subscribers to be easily invoiced

- Subscription management:
Activation and maintenance of End-user Profiles in HLR or Radius Systems

- Authentication services:
Authentication of users via a signalling gateway that allows W-LAN users to roam within W-LAN networks, from mobile networks to W-LAN networks and eventually vice versa

- Security aspects:
The threat of misuse or unauthorised access is a major concern for W-LAN roaming services. The issue of security will be addressed by t-net through the subscription management and authentication services, which include multiple levels of security management. The initial focus will be on RADIUS and GSM-SIM authentication

- Value added services:
Additional services on top of WeRoam will be developed in the future, e.g. Multimedia Messaging, Voice over IP, Customer Applications, etc.

- Network services, Internet access, signalling, etc. - offered in co-operation with t-net partners:
Additional services to be provided by partners of t-net

About the customers - the WeRoam family
The t-net family members are W-LAN and GSM Operators. In addition, t-net intends to create close relationships with service providers, MNCs and hardware vendors.

About WeRoam - the benefits
- seamless mobility for W-LAN users -- roaming between W-LAN networks and W-LAN and GSM networks    
- security of service guaranteed
- worldwide coverage through the connection of all W-LAN hotspots to a global virtual W-LAN network
- easy connectivity for travelers to all WeRoam enabled hotspots
- only one bill for all communications (via GSM SIM)
- additional revenue gained from inbound and outbound roaming services
- only one agreement enables operators to benefit from all activities of the growing W-LAN industry
- additional value added services planned for the future

About W-LAN
The major benefit of wireless LANs is increased broadband mobility. Subscribers will be able to access and share information on a global scale, covering almost anywhere they dare to venture.

Roaming is crucial for maximising coverage. Public and private W-LAN operators can achieve coverage by joining forces with mobile operators. Likewise, mobile network operators need public W-LANs to enable their subscribers to enjoy the benefits of high speed connectivity. Unlike private W-LANs, public W-LANs require subscription control, roaming agreements and centralised network management.

WeRoam at the 3G World Congress in Cannes
t-Net will be attending the 3G World Congress in Cannes on 19-22 February 2002 and will be presenting the WeRoam product. Please visit us in Hall 2, Booth # D10. More detailed information about WeRoam and t-net can be found at http://www.weroam.com.

About TOGEWA
Togewa Holding, based in the Swiss capital city of Bern, is owned by four former top management members of Swisscom Mobile. Under the presidency of Walter Heutschi Togewa Holding established a number of companies, one of the group being t-net AG. t-net is 100% owned by Togewa Holding and specialises in mobility management and roaming optimisation.
   
   

Safe Harbor Statement: t-net may have made forward-looking statements in this release. These statements, if any, are based on information available to the company as of the date of this release and t-net undertakes no duty to update the information to take account of later events. The accuracy of our forward-looking statements will also be affected by the strength of the market for t-net products and services, competition and the effect of currency fluctuation.