Fibre to the Home

"Verizon completes Fiber-to-the Premises vendor selections by choosing Preformed Line Products and three other companies; deployment and new product rollout begin in 2004".

Cleveland, Ohio - Preformed Line Products (NASDAQ: PLPC) announced the formation of an alliance with ADC (NASDAQ: ADCT) and Sumitomo Electric to pro- vide a complete end-to-end solution for fiber-to-the- premise (FTTP/FTTX) deployment within major com- munications service provider networks. The alliance offers service providers a comprehensive bundle of customizable and flexible FTTX connectivity solutions that fit seamlessly into existing networks.

"No other vendor matches the combined experience, expertise, resources and capabilities of this alliance," said Rob Ruhlman, president and CEO, Preformed Line Products (PLP). "PLP is pleased to be a part of the team that can deliver exactly what the customer needs, when it is needed, in the most efficient way possible."

In the fiber solution developed specifically for FTTX applications, PLP provides the access terminals and splice closures needed in any FTTX deployment. ADC delivers proven, market leading fiber connectivity equipment including ACE hardened outdoor cabinets, fiber termination storage and splicing, and fiber con- nectorization.

Sumitomo Electric provides fiber cable, feeder, distri- bution and drop cable along with optical components all connectorized with ADC products.

"This is a tremendous leap in helping carriers deliver fiber services not just to the edge of the network, but to the home, business and other locations," com- ments Pat O'Brien, president of ADC's Connectivity Business Unit. "Our work with Sumitomo and PLP enables us to combine engineering efforts, field expe- rience, and product expertise to deliver the best fiber connectivity solution for FTTX deployments at a very competitive cost."

"Service providers must architect their FTTX network right the first time in order to minimize capital ex- penses while ensuring a network that will last well into the future," said Fred McDuffee, president, Sumi- tomo Electric Lightwave. "By combining our products, we now offer the most comprehensive fiber-to-the- home solution available. This is truly a complete end- to-end offering that solves every passive equipment need that exists in an FTTX deployment."

Through the integration of the alliance's resources, customers may work jointly with the alliance team to design, build, and integrate the complete passive portion of their network to meet growing high speed data, Internet, video and voice demands. The com- bined resources of the alliance facilitate the custom- ization of solutions, which offer the customer flex- ibility, options, and control over costs. The alliance's objective is to minimize customers' capital expenses by ensuring that they design their FTTX network right the first time, while ensuring a network that will last well into the future.

Other companies that Verizon selected are:
Advanced Fibre Communications Inc. for the central-office electronics; abd outside plant suppliers Corning Cable Systems, Pirelli Commu- nications Cables Systems North America and Fiber Opric Network Solutions (FONS).