Calabasas, Calif. - Aug. 21, 2001 – Alcatel (NYSE: ALA) today will offer business partners the Alcatel Convergence Starter Kit, a unique solution that provides medium to large enterprises the ability to trial voice/data convergence with options of in-building wireless capabilities for mobile workers and soft-phone functionality for remote workers.

“The fact that Alcatel’s Convergence Starter Kit includes the software shipping today is a key point,” said Bill Flanagan, Program Director, The Burton Group. “In reports and in person I advise clients to test exactly what they will deploy, including the version of software, to avoid introducing uncertainty into the trial process. Alcatel's approach ensures that features will work as tested.”

As companies look to improve employee productivity and customer support, they will need to offer powerful business tools such as in-building wireless phones for mobile workers and soft phones for teleworkers. Alcatel’s OmniPCX 4400 IP-based PBX and OmniStack 6024 stackable LAN switch provide these capabilities in a convergence solution that supports data devices and IP, digital, analog and in-building wireless telephony devices. With the inclusion of an IP-enabler, the Kit also demonstrates how a digital phone can easily evolve into a full-featured IP-phone, without disruption and any change to the user interface.

“Wireless business systems are a great way for companies to provide better customer service and improve their employees’ productivity by reducing the time they spend playing ‘phone tag’,” said Shelly Tyler-Radler, senior analyst, InfoTech. “In-building wireless solutions such as the Alcatel’s PWT handsets will be especially attractive to enterprises as well as the education, healthcare, retail, and manufacturing sectors that have highly mobile employees. InfoTech projects the enterprise wireless will be a $768 million market in the U.S. in 2005.”

Alcatel’s new Convergence Starter Kit is unlike any other trial kit on the market. It provides businesses with the opportunity to sample in-building wireless capabilities so that mobile users can take customer calls anytime, anywhere, and still access the same features as their Alcatel desktop phones. The Kit also lets businesses enhance teleworkers’ PCs to obtain the full range of Alcatel’s desktop phone features, including dial by name, corporate directories, and voice, fax and e-mail messaging integration.

“The Alcatel Convergence Starter Kit allows us to better meet the needs of enterprises interested in testing convergence solutions as well as vertical markets that can benefit from unique mobility and teleworker features on a reliable, scalable and robust phone system,” said Fred Brussee, CT-Innovations, Alcatel Business Partner (www.ct-innovations.com).

Pricing and Availability

The Alcatel Convergence Starter Kit is now available through Alcatel’s North America channel partners until December 31, 2001. Recommended end-user pricing is $19,995 inclusive of hardware, software and one-day installation. For sales inquiries, please call 800-995-2612.

About the Omni family of convergence-ready network solutions

Alcatel's award-winning Omni family of networking solutions meets the needs of enterprises converging voice and data networks. Based on a client/server UNIX architecture, the Alcatel OmniPCX 4400 is an IP-PBX with dual IP-TDM capabilities that supports scalability from 50 to 50,000 users, innovative Reflexes telephone handsets, 99.999 percent reliability, one-number mobility, unified messaging and voice-over IP networking. Alcatel’s Omni family of data switches and Secure VPN solutions provide the network foundation that supports the quality of service, security, and management requirements of converged networks.