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BridgeWave Brings Quality of Service Functionality to High-Capacity Multi-Gigabit 4G WiMAX and LTE Networks

Santa Clara, Calif. – Mar. 18, 2010 – BridgeWave Communications, the leading supplier of gigabit wireless solutions, today announced the newest version of its FlexPort family of high-capacity 80 GHz radios for mobile backhaul. FlexPort is now the first backhaul solution to incorporate quality of service (QoS) into a high-frequency, high-capacity 80 GHz product. Purpose-built for mobile operators and service providers, FlexPort offers cost-effective gigabit backhaul that natively supports both legacy TDM traffic along with IP-based 4G traffic.

With the advent of "app stores" for mobile platforms, consumer mobile application choice for "real-time" VoIP or video applications such as Vonage mobile and Skype mobile for their smart phones is burgeoning. According to Ovum Research, more than half of US wireless operators plan to launch and increase access to real-time video services between 2009 and 2011.

As more and more real-time applications appear on consumer mobile devices, carriers must ensure subscribers get the right application performance at the right time, even in times of network strain. FlexPort's QoS prioritizes real-time application traffic to ensure these applications are given necessary network priority.

“In 2010 and 2011 mobile carriers will accelerate the build out of cost-effective HSPA+, LTE and WiMAX networks with a focus on capacity, flexibility and ease of management to ultimately ensure customers have a positive mobile experience for any application,” said Earl Lum, president of EJL Wireless Research. “To ensure customer satisfaction, operators must account for not only real-time applications, but also exponential traffic growth, meaning high-frequency 70 and 80 GHz network solutions and QoS will be strongly considered in their build out plans.”

The most recent version of FlexPort builds upon the solution's already market-leading capabilities by adding:

QoS - Quality of Service
FlexPort uses an integral five port Ethernet switch that applies Quality of Service rules to incoming traffic to prioritize data. FlexPort allows for up to eight queues for enhanced QoS performance and supports strict priority queuing or shaped deficit weighted round robin (SDWRR) queuing.

OAM - Carrier Ethernet Network Management
FlexPort incorporates Ethernet Operation, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM) functionality. This facilitates automated end-to-end network management and monitoring that validates connections, detects faults and alarms, and monitors link performance.

1+1 Configurations
FlexPort brings the same system redundancy found in traditional microwave systems to the millimeter wave spectrum with 1+1 Monitored Hot Standby (MHSB) configurations. FlexPort MHSB configurations allow for two outdoor units to be coupled to one antenna via the use of a millimeter wave MHSB Coupler, invented by BridgeWave.

“Carriers must be able to quickly provision the most efficient, flexible and reliable networks possible that enable on-the-fly management to accommodate changing networks demands and subscriber needs,” said Idan Bar Sade, Senior Vice President of Engineering and Product Management at BridgeWave Communications. “This is why we have engineered FlexPort to be the only 80 GHz solution with not only QoS, but also strong Ethernet network management and monitoring and full system redundancy for network reliability.”

With the FlexPort, BridgeWave continues to be the proven leader in 80 GHz backhaul solutions with greater than 65 percent world-wide market share, offering the first carrier-class backhaul platform for 4G migration. Operating in the 80 GHz frequency band, where multi-gigahertz allocations yield multi-gigabit transmission rates, FlexPort is a single Outdoor Unit (ODU) platform that connects TDM-based mobile base stations, while simultaneously supporting full-rate gigabit IP transport for 4G networks. FlexPort's innovation in the high-frequency 80 GHz spectrum provides up to 1.2 Gbps of capacity with planned product rollouts for rates up to 2.5 Gbps - five to ten times the capacity of single-channel, lower licensed frequency products at significantly lower per megabit cost.

More information on FlexPort products can be found here.

About BridgeWave Communications
Founded in 1999, BridgeWave Communications is the leading supplier of multi-gigabit wireless connectivity links for next-generation 4G mobile and WiMAX backhaul. The company's advanced millimeter wave technologies combined with innovative features such as native TDM+IP transport, flexible channel tuning, AdaptRate™ and AdaptPath™, built-in 256-bit AES Encryption, and advanced Forward Error Correction, provide carrier-class performance at the highest availability and longest distances for multi-gigabit links. The FlexPort™ product delivers scalable capacity for the migration to 4G mobile network backhaul. BridgeWave's point-to-point wireless links are deployed worldwide in mainstream enterprise, government and service provider networks and play a key role in today's WiMAX networks. With the largest global installed base of GigE radios, BridgeWave delivers the highest levels of product quality and reliability. For more information, visit www.bridgewave.com.