CITEL Technologies Unveils CITELlink IP Handset Gateways Worlds first Handset Gateway to provide IP PBX Interoperability for Millions of Installed Traditional Telephones-will help to Accelerate IP Adoption

CITELlink is the worlds first handset gateway to provide IP PBX interoperability for legacy PBX telephones across multiple vendor lines. The CITELlink gateway communicates in legacy PBX protocol to traditional telephone handsets and Internet Protocol (IP) to the IP PBX, and performs the translation between the two simultaneously across multiple vendor products.

(Seattle, Washington and Nottingham, England--May 30, 2002)--CITEL Technologies, a global provider of IP telephony and communications solutions, announced today the release of its new CITELlink(tm) IP Handset Gateway. CITELlink is the worlds first handset gateway to provide IP PBX interoperability for legacy PBX telephones across multiple vendor lines. The CITELlink gateway communicates in legacy PBX protocol to traditional telephone handsets and Internet Protocol (IP) to the IP PBX, and performs the translation between the two simultaneously across multiple vendor products. Enterprise customers can now take advantage of increased scalability, reliability, easy migration, and lower cost of ownership by deploying next-generation IP PBX applications on their traditional telephone handsets. These telephones can now be empowered with a new IP telephony backbone offering advanced built-in features like unified messaging, computer-telephone integration, Web based administration, and telecommuter and remote user support that are standard on most IP PBXs.

The CITELlink IP Handset Gateway bridges the two worlds of legacy and next-generation IP applications opening the previously closed PBX market-by linking the digital telephone handsets of one vendor with an IP PBX of another vendor. CITELlink unlocks the migration barriers of "proprietary" PBX systems, so customers now have the freedom to choose from the best solutions offered by leading IP PBX vendors to support and grow their current infrastructure, while protecting and maintaining their largest communications investment-their telephone handsets. With more than 300 million legacy telephone handsets in the market today, the CITELlink gateway represents a significant savings for enterprise customers worldwide.

"We expect that by 2005, 60 percent of the new phone systems shipped in the U.S. will be either a pure IP PBX or a Hybrid PBX," reports Joe Gagan, senior analyst for The Yankee Group.
"Because some buyers will want to retain their investment in the $400 Digital handset, while still benefiting from the value proposition of an IP PBX, there will be a significant demand for the type of solution that CITEL Technologies provides," adds Gagan.

"Over the past two years, there has been a tremendous amount of interest in IP telephony applications but some of the biggest stumbling blocks for adoption were the lack of clear migration paths for customers utilizing legacy telephone systems, as well as the daunting investment necessary to support these 'forklift' implementations," says Alan Law, chief executive officer of CITEL Technologies. "CITEL addressed these customer concerns and migration obstacles when creating our gateways. We are removing those barriers for enterprise customers of all sizes. CITELlink will help accelerate IP telephony migrations for customers worldwide, as our strategic partners and voice and data resellers are now equipped with a powerful solution to pursue new opportunities for growth."

"We chose the CITELlink IP Handset Gateway because it offered a seamless, easy migration to convergent communications applications that met our growing demands," states CITELlink customer David McKenna, commercial director of Origin Data Realisation. "We were looking for a solution that could scale up to match the growth of our network over time. CITEL was able to deliver a completely integrated solution, hardware and software that enabled us to implement an IP-enabled solution quickly, that supported our current Nortel Norstar telephones. Our RBR2620 IP packet recorder has been a part of the initial Beta trial and is currently demonstrating full interoperability in recording the calls made to and from the CITELlink gateway as well," adds McKenna.

CITELlink IP Handset Gateways Provide Freedom of Choice for Customers

Until the introduction of CITELlink, enterprise customers were "locked" into the (expensive, cumbersome or unavailable) migration products or plans of their currently installed PBX vendor. CITELlink gateways have opened the closed "proprietary" PBX market-returning the freedom of choice to customers-by providing interoperability for multiple vendor products. CITELlink IP Handset Gateways are architected with standards-based communication protocols to ensure a seamless transition for legacy platforms and provide the necessary bridge to enable migration to next-generation IP applications quickly and easily.

CITELlink IP Handset Gateways Answer the Needs of Businesses

CITELlink IP Handset Gateways help small- to large-sized enterprise businesses offer the best possible customer service by enabling robust communications control for employees, who are increasingly overwhelmed with a variety of communications. Enterprise customers want an alternative to a complete replacement of existing systems when migrating to a next-generation IP PBX. Empowered by CITELlink, IP PBXs can now deliver rich unified messaging and computer telephony features directly to the already-deployed traditional telephone handsets of users. Users retain the familiar, reliable desktop telephone experience, while receiving a new IP telephony communications backbone for their systems, delivering cost-effective applications and services, and new features like CTI and directory dialing capabilities.

Lower Cost of Administration and Ownership

With the CITELlink IP Handset Gateway, businesses can save as much as 40 to 60 percent by retaining their existing investment in telephone handsets and associated wiring infrastructure, eliminating the need for retraining employees, and reducing the need for Local Area Network (LAN) upgrades usually required to support IP telephony.

A Major Opportunity for IP PBX Vendors and Resellers

CITELlink significantly reduces the cost and complexity of migrating existing customer sites to IP Telephony, which enables vendors and resellers to more rapidly expand their IP PBX customer base. Using CITELlink, sixteen users can be migrated to IP telephony in just a few minutes by removing a single telecom connector from the legacy systems line card and plugging it into the CITELlink gateway. Further breaking down the barriers of migration, CITEL will continuously provide new gateway integrations for traditional telephone systems worldwide and leading IP architectures. CITELlink is targeted for general release in June 2002. CITELlink currently scales to 16-ports per unit and multiple units can be linked together to support larger enterprise capacities. The manufacturers suggested retail price (MSRP) is $2,000 (US) per 16-port unit, or $125 (US) per user. Since CITEL Technologies sells through distribution, we do not control actual sales price. Interested resellers can contact CITELs sales directly by email at sales@citel.com.

About CITEL Technologies

CITEL Technologies is a global provider of unique IP telephony and converged communications solutions, which bridge the two worlds of legacy PBX telephones and next-generation IP PBX systems. CITEL works in partnership with the worlds leading telecom equipment manufacturers and suppliers, with the goal of simplifying and accelerating the transition to next-generation communications solutions. Since 1995, CITEL has developed award-winning telephony products and is now pioneering a new product category of Handset Gateways. CITEL Technologies is a private company with offices in Nottingham, (England), Providence, Rhode Island (USA), and Seattle, Washington (USA). For more information, visit our Web site at www.citel.com.

For information, product photographs, and interviews please contact the following:
CITEL Corporate Communications: Monica Drake, global director of corporate communications
Tel: (206)-686-3800, ext. 219 (USA) or Toll Free: 1-(877)-248-3587 (USA)
Email: pr@citel.com
Web site: www.citel.com

CITEL and CITELlink are trademarks of CITEL Technologies Ltd. Other names may be trademarks owned by third parties.