LEADING VENDORS AND RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS UNITE TO ACCELERATE 
USE OF NEW INTERNET TELEPHONY STANDARD (SIP)

Melville, NY-- August 9, 1999:  Engineering groups representing leading
vendors and research organizations met to jointly test the operation of
their Internet telephony products at the offices of pulver.com in
Melville last week.

The technology "bake-off" was the second event organized to test the
interoperability of software and hardware devices using the Session
Initiation Protocol (SIP).  SIP can set up and configure Internet
telephone calls and multimedia sessions.

This protocol was approved in March by the Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF), the standards-body governing the technical foundations of
products used on the Internet.  Participants at the interoperability
event linked their products to one another's to test that the devices
will work with each other across the Internet.

Beyond the basic call setup, participants tested advanced features such
as call forwarding, secure registration for portable numbers, automatic
call distribution, call cancellation, loop detection, and functionality
for web-based call centers.

Internet telephony carries telephone conversations as Internet packets
rather than the current digital circuits.  It promises high-quality
voice and multimedia, improved network efficiency, rich
computer-telephony integration, advanced services, an open market for
providers, and reduced costs for consumers.  New services include a
single identifier ("universal address") for phone, cellular, fax, email,
and paging; user control over incoming calls; and easy integration
between email, web, and telephone services.  According to a study by the
investment bank Piper Jaffray Inc., the IP telephony market will
increase to $14.7 billion by 2003.  (In 1997, 70 million minutes, less
than 0.1 percent of the total call volume, went over IP networks.  In
four years, the report predicts, this will increase to 70 billion
minutes, about 6.1% of all calls.)

Organizations participating in the interoperability testing came from
Canada, France, and the United States.  They included:  3Com
(NASD:COMS), 8x8 (NASD:EGHT), Bell Labs (NYSE:LU), BroadSoft, Cisco
Systems (NASD:CSCO), Columbia University, dynamicsoft, Ericsson Inc. 
(NASD:ERICY), MCI WorldCom (NASD:WCOM), Mitel Corp (NYSE:MLT)., Nortel
Networks (NYSE:NT), Pingtel Corp., and the University of Waterloo

"The message here is that SIP is gaining more momentum with PBX Ethernet
phones and virtual switches.  The impact of this could be the
availability of the feature set envisioned with AIN twenty plus years
ago." said Jeff Pulver, CEO of pulver.com.

Henning Schulzrinne of Columbia University, co-author of the SIP
specification and host of the first SIP bake-off in April, said "The
second bake-off allowed more mature implementations to test advanced
features like security and proxying, while newer implementations could
quickly discover interoperability problems.  It also established that a
single PBX or Internet-based next-generation phone network can combine
servers, Internet phones, PC clients, and gateways from different
vendors and function reliably.  All participants are looking forward to
the next bake-off in a few months." Details about future
interoperability tests of other advanced features offered by SIP are not
yet available.

"8x8 sees SIP as an essential component of IntraSwitch, its
multi-protocol Java IP-PBX." said Frederic Artru, General Manager of
8x8's Network Software Division.  "With faster development, SIP will be
able to evolve quicker than other IP protocols.  The results at this SIP
bake-off have clearly shown the huge potential for multi-vendor
solutions to interoperate seamlessly.  SIP is definitely becoming the
HTTP of IP-telephony."

"The SIP Bakeoff is an ideal forum for the industry to validate the SIP
standard and promote interoperability," according to Alex Doyle,
Development Manager at BroadSoft.  "BroadSoft is a company committed to
providing enhanced, value-added services on packet networks.  By
establishing an environment to promote vendor interoperability, the
Bakeoff is key to ensuring that enhanced services can run seamlessly
across SIP networks."

"Interoperability of dynamicsoft's jSIP product is one of our
development team's top priorities," said Dana Stetson, dynamicsoft vice
president of sales.

"Participating in a forum like the SIP Bake-Off is just one of the ways
Ericsson supports the interoperability of IP Telephony networks and the
development of standards" said Mark Miller, director of Datacom Networks
and IP Services for Ericsson.  "We want to thank Jeff for hosting a
forum that allows us to assure our customers of complete
interoperability."

"This event gives participating vendors like Pingtel an opportunity to
bullet-proof our products by doing extensive multi-vendor
interoperability testing," said Jay Batson, CEO of Pingtel.  "Successful
implementations of SIP are moving at 'Internet-speed.' This is the
second SIP testing event for us in just four months, and the technical
advancement among the vendors is breathtaking.  In a very short time,
customers will be seeing new products that solve many business problems
using SIP- based IP telephony."

More information about SIP can be found at
http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~hgs/sip.

More information about pulver.com and its Voice on the Net conferences
which cover the convergence of Internet and telephony can be found at: 
www.pulver.com

For additional information, contact the press relations department of
any of the participating organizations:

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.  (www.3com.com)

8x8 is a leading manufacturer of digital telecommunication products,
including both central office and customer premise equipment for
Internet Protocol (IP) telephony.  By leveraging its vertically
integrated technology, the Company provides complete IP telephony
solutions to service providers such as ISPs, ILECs, CLECs and cable TV
system operators, and to telecommunications equipment manufacturers. 
For more information, visit 8x81s web site at http://www.8x8.com.

BroadSoft is the leader in service creation platforms for next
generation networks.  BroadSoft's mission is to bring powerful services
to operators on a single, integrated platform, enabling the rapid and
economical design and deployment of new services, while providing quick
response to customer concerns and needs.  BroadSoft is located on the
I-270 Technology Corridor in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC, and
on the Web at www.broadsoft.com.

Cisco Systems, Inc.  is the worldwide leader in networking for the
Internet.  Cisco continues to expand the current line of multiservice
solutions designed to enable Service Providers' customers to migrate
their data networks to a single integrated data, voice, and video
network.  Cisco's multiservice products protect Service Providers'
investments in technology, education, and training by providing scalable
solutions that grow with their customers' requirements.  These products
also enable Service Providers to offer integrated voice services like
VoIP or multiplexed voice/data, while providing a migration path to
packet voice without needing to change equipment.  (www.cisco.com)

dynamicsoft is the leading supplier of Java technology-based software
solutions that enable communications equipment manufacturers and service
providers to deliver voice/fax and enhanced applications in converged
networks.  Receiving Internet Telephony Magazine's "Product of the Year"
award, dynamicsoft's Java technology-based jVoIP framework combines a
standards-based open architecture with innovative technologies to enable
exceptional quality, scalability and configurability.  Visit dynamicsoft
at www.dynamicsoft.com. 

Ericsson is the leading provider in the new telecoms world, with
communications solutions that combine telecom and datacom technologies
with freedom of mobility for the user.  With more than 100,000 employees
in 140 countries, Ericsson simplifies communications for its customers -
network operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers - the
world over.  (www.ericsson.com)

Lucent Technologies, headquartered in Murray Hill, N.J., designs, builds
and delivers a wide range of public and private networks, communications
systems and software, data networking systems, business telephone
systems and microelectronic components.  Bell Labs is the research and
development arm for the company.  (www.lucent.com)

Mitel Corporation is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of
telecommunications products.  With its headquarters in Kanata, Ontario,
Canada, and 74 offices and manufacturing facilities worldwide, Mitel
employs more that 6,300 people.

Nortel Networks delivers value to customers around the world through
Unified Networks* solutions, spanning mission-critical telephony and
IP-optimized networks.  Customers include public and private enterprises
and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance,
cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers,
and utilities.  Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New
York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges.  Nortel
Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately
75,000 employees worldwide.  (www.nortel.com)

Pingtel is building hardware and software products for use in business
telephone systems.  A development-stage company backed by major industry
and venture partners, Pingtel will announce and release its products
later in 1999.  The company is based in the 128 corridor near Boston,
and more information can be found on the web at www.pingtel.com.


Contact: Donna Levy, pulver.com
Phone: (516) 547-0800
Fax: (516) 396-7870
Email: donna@pulver.com

Contact: Prof. Henning Schulzrinne
Dept. of Computer Science
Columbia University
New York, NY 10027
phone: 212 939 7042
fax:   212 666 0140
email: hgs@cs.columbia.edu