Aztek Networks Introduces the World's Smallest Class 5 Switch Targeting Emergency Stand Alone (ESA) Applications

The 5000S ESA Switch, Which Enhances Voice Network Reliability and Provides Greater Public Safety, Will Be Available June 18, 2007

Boulder, Colo. (June 18, 2007) - Aztek Networks, a leading provider of independent Emergency Stand Alone (ESA) switching products for telecommunications carriers, announced today the release and general availability of its newest product innovation, the Aztek 5000S. The 5000S, with Aztek's patent-pending True ESA™ technology, is the world's smallest TDM Class 5 local voice switch. The Aztek 5000S offers a cost-effective, flexible solution for switch collapse and the replacement of legacy telecommunications end-office remote switching units (RSU).

According to industry research from Millennium Marketing, there are well over 10,000 RSUs currently installed in telecommunications exchanges in the U.S. These systems, which are tied to the host switch via proprietary signaling protocols, are expensive to maintain and operate and offer no upgrade path to VoIP, broadband data or IPTV services. An Aztek 5000S, combined with a multi-service access system at the remote site, offers customers voice, video and data services, plus the same standalone local calling and 911 capability as a traditional RSU but at a fraction of the space and power consumption.

"Legacy RSUs have served the carriers well, but they are aging and there will be no place for them in the new broadband world," said Kermit Ross, principal of Millennium Marketing. "Carriers need solutions such as those from Aztek Networks and their broadband equipment partners that allow them to offer high speed triple-play services while maintaining their traditionally high levels of voice reliability and 911 service. A broadband access system combined with Aztek's 5000S local ESA switch is an ideal solution for switch collapse and the replacement of legacy RSUs."

The 5000S is compact -- just one-rack unit high -- for easy installation in an air-conditioned end office or in a field cabinet. With daily automatic dial-plan updates from the host switch, the 5000S is a low-hassle and easy-to-manage back-up switching solution. The system has comprehensive 911 features, including priority handling of 911 calls, dual processor cards for full redundancy and eight T1 ports that can support over 2,000 subscriber lines in ESA mode.

Aztek's 5000S communicates via the GR-303 communications protocol and will interoperate with any standards-based GR-303 access system. The 5000S continuously monitors the GR-303 signaling link between the access system and the host switch and only becomes active if the signaling link fails or is interrupted for any reason. When a failure occurs, the 5000S automatically assumes call control and maintains local calling capability and 911 services for all downstream access systems and their subscribers until the link with the host switch is restored.

"The 5000S is a product that can save lives and give telecom carriers and their subscribers peace of mind that telephone lines will remain operable and accessible at all times," said Steven Bruny, CEO at Aztek Networks. "We offer an open-standards solution that enables the upgrade of remote end-office exchanges to broadband access without sacrificing local calling capability or access to life-saving emergency 911 services."

The Aztek 5000S is available via partnerships with broadband access system vendors, including an announced partnership with Calix, the largest telecom equipment supplier focused solely on access solutions for broadband service delivery. The Aztek 5000S is also available via distribution partnerships with premier telecommunications equipment resellers Walker and Associates and Goldfield Telecom. Aztek will be displaying its new 5000S switch at NXTcomm in Chicago, June 19-21, 2007.

About Aztek Networks
Based in Boulder, Colorado, Aztek Networks is the leading provider of dedicated Emergency Stand Alone (ESA) switching products. The company's patent-pending True ESA™ technology is the basis for the first and only truly open-standards, environmentally hardened and fully redundant ESA switch. Aztek's TDM and IP-based ESA switches, when combined with next-generation multi-service access systems, offer incumbent telecommunications carriers reliable and cost-effective solutions for greenfield access applications and the replacement of legacy remote switches. More information is available at www.azteknetworks.net.