Lucent and Telecom Partners to Deploy Highly Secure High-Speed Wireless Access Technology in Hotels, Airports and Convention Centers - Company Business and Marketing

Cambridge Telcom Report, May 8, 2000

VirtuaLAN Inc., a Telecom Partners' portfolio company, Monday announced a strategic relationship with Lucent Technologies (NYSE:LU) to deploy high-speed wireless access technology and virtual private network solutions in the United States and international markets.

This exclusive relationship to deploy Lucent Technologies ORiNOCO Internet Access Server products in U.S. hotels, airports, convention centers and other public areas will deliver reliable and secure high-speed access and value-added services including virtual private network solutions to mobile business professionals.

Lucent's ORiNOCO provides mobile workforces, travelers and exhibitors with reliable and secure high-speed Internet connectivity at 11 Megabits per second. ORiNOCO Access Server adds additional levels of security and account management on top of the standard Wi-Fi 802.11b wireless local area technologies used in many offices, enterprises and universities. By simply starting up their ORiNOCO equipped laptops or mobile computing devices and logging on, VirtuaLAN's subscribers will be able to easily access their e-mail, download or upload presentations and other large files, or even watch streaming video.

VirtuaLAN caters to mobile business professionals and CIOs of large corporations who need reliable, high-speed access to the Internet while on the road, and reduces the security concerns, frustrations and high costs related to remote Internet access. VirtuaLAN's single platform network facilitates virtual private network services that provide end users with the ability to walk into an airport or a hotel room and to securely get high-speed access back to their corporate network.

VirtuaLAN also enables end users to quickly log onto the Internet in their hotel rooms, eliminating the searching for phone jacks and changing of dial-up configurations. VirtuaLAN creates a "roaming" network, enabling users to travel outside of their existing physical network. VirtuaLAN is compatible with Lucent's WaveLAN ORiNOCO office products, Lucent's Residential Gateway products for the home, and other vendor devices with 802.11b interface cards.

"We looked at everyone's wireless local area network architectures and selected to roll-out with Lucent's ORiNOCO access server," said Mark D. Adolph, member of Telecom Partners. "No other technology offers the levels of security, key management, multiple quality of service levels and account management that CIOs of corporations and road warriors demand."

"Telecom Partners possesses proven expertise in recognizing opportunities and building successful companies that provide real world solutions to real world challenges," said Bryant Isaacs, general manager, Wireless Communications & Networking Division -- Atlanta. "By using our ORiNOCO technology to provide extremely secure, high speed Internet access, the VirtuaLAN network will prove to be an essential service for the business people and road warriors of the next millennium."

"We continue forming strategic relationships with vendors creating service providers that deploy next generation networks delivering unique services in high demand by large enterprises and business professionals," said Stephen W. Schovee, managing member of Telecom Partners. "Lucent Technologies and Telecom Partners' portfolio companies have created billion dollar ventures in the past and VirtuaLAN is our next venture."

More on Lucent

Lucent Technologies, with headquarters in Murray Hill, N.J., USA, designs and delivers the systems, software, silicon and services for next-generation communications networks for service providers and enterprises. Backed by the research and development of Bell Labs, Lucent focuses on high-growth areas such as optical and wireless networks; Internet infrastructure; communications software; communications semiconductors and optoelectronics; Web-based enterprise solutions that link private and public networks; and professional network design and consulting services. For more information on Lucent Technologies, visit its Web site at http://www.lucent.com.

More on Telecom Partners

Based in Denver, Telecom Partners is managed by Stephen W. Schovee and William J. Elsner, who are seasoned entrepreneurs with extensive experience in raising capital, starting and building communications businesses. They have co-founded six companies including Colorado-based Verio Inc. (Nasdaq:VRIO), OneComm Corp., UnitedGlobalCom Inc. (Nasdaq:UCOMA), Formus Communications Inc. and VeloCom Inc., as well as Virginia-based VIA Net.Works Inc. (Nasdaq:VNWI). In addition to co-founding companies, the firm has made early stage investments in Allied Riser Communications Corp. (Nasdaq:ARCC), Exactis.com Inc. (Nasdaq:XACT), ATG Group Inc. and Gabriel Communications Inc.

Telecom Partners' portfolio companies have raised more than $5 billion of capital in less than four years to support their growth. For more information on Telecom Partners, visit their Web site at http://www.telecompartners.com.