Press Release

June 1, 2004 - Comporium Communications Selects “Last Mile Link” System from Wave7 Optics for New Fiber-to-the-Premises Networks in South Carolina

Atlanta, GA – June 1, 2004 – Wave7 Optics Inc., a leading developer of FTTP (fiber-to-the-premises) systems for residential and business services, today announced that Comporium Communications (Rock Hill, S.C.), the 20th largest incumbent local exchange carrier in the U.S., has selected the company’s Last Mile Link system for new FTTP networks that are going live this year.

Comporium, who, with more than 150,000 current customers, is one of the largest telecommunications companies and cable TV system operators in the Southeast, has decided to deploy FTTP as its broadband service for new home and office building development, also known as “green field” development.

Comporium will use FTTP to provide the triple play of voice, video and data services to homes and businesses throughout their service area. Residential customers typically will enjoy up to four lines of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone service, up to 150 channels of digital and High Definition television (RF or IP, with plenty of available bandwidth to accommodate additional HDTV service), and 10 Mbps or even faster Internet service. Business customers will have access to multiple T1 equivalent ports, video services, multiple phone lines and full Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) or 10 GbE support.

The selection of the Last Mile Link illustrates a growing trend in the industry to deploy “active Ethernet” based FTTP networks, as opposed to strictly “PON” (passive optical network) systems.

“After reviewing all of the different FTTP technologies, we determined that an Active Ethernet approach is the best long-term solution,” said Dan Smith, vice president of engineering & planning for Comporium. “As IP over Gigabit Ethernet has reached maturity and all network architectures continue to migrate towards IP, we wanted to put in a platform that would take advantage of the magnitude of Ethernet technology and the resulting capital and operational savings. The Last Mile Link product from Wave7 met our criteria of having highly scaleable bandwidth, support of both RF and multicast IP Video, and support of circuit- and soft-switched voice. As compared to coax or copper networks, the possibilities of fiber are endless. It is the only truly future-proof plant.”

“In an ATM-based Passive Optical Network (PON), a single unprotected trunk fiber from a conditioned central office is required to serve a small cluster of up to 32 homes,” continued Smith. “However, using Wave7’s Last Mile Core fed by a redundant Gigabit Ethernet ring, we can serve several hundred customers at a time without having to dedicate a large number of fibers back to a central office. When customer demand grows, we can upgrade the Gigabit Ethernet ring to multiple Gigabits or to 10 Gigabit. That kind of bandwidth using ATM will always be cost prohibitive.”

“The Last Mile Link positions Comporium well for the future in terms of available bandwidth to provide current and next-generation services and network reliability, security and intelligence,” said Tom Tighe, CEO of Wave7 Optics. “Our method of deep packet classification enables us to meet the ‘lifeline’ criteria for voice services and to offer different ‘quality of service’ levels to our customers. Furthermore, we continue to pace the industry with improved layer 3 network edge intelligence and other benefits.”

About Comporium
The Comporium group of companies, based in Rock Hill, S.C., provides a full spectrum of telecommunications and related services, including local telephone, long distance, wireless, cable TV, Internet, security, data services and directory publishing to residential and commercial customers. Please visit www.comporium.com for more information.

About Wave7 Optics
Wave7 Optics, Inc. is a market leader in FTTP systems for “triple play” services, with customers around the world in the IOC, CLEC, MSO, municipal, real estate development and utility sectors. The company's “Last Mile Link” optical access system effectively overcomes the deployment and operational cost barriers that have to date stymied the deployment of optical broadband systems. Wave7’s Last Mile Core transport and Last Mile Gateway subscriber premises products provide advanced “carrier class” QoS and Layer 3 intelligence at the network edge. The Last Mile Link offers service providers a particular advantage with regards to video in that it is the only platform that supports upstream RF return signals and readily accommodates HDTV.

For more information please contact emmanuel.vella@w7optics.com.

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