Nortel Networks Introduces Secure Mobility for Converged Enterprise Networks

Announces industry's first VPN gateway to support IPSec, SSL remote access

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- November 4, 2003 -- Nortel Networks (NYSE:NT) today announced a comprehensive security framework supported by new products that will enable enterprise customers to eliminate the boundaries in their existing communications infrastructure. Nortel Networks secure mobility framework is designed to enable enterprises to provide secure, flexible access to multimedia content in converged networks for mobile and remote users -- from anywhere and from any device -- while positioning companies to drive dramatically lower costs.

Nortel Networks new secure mobility framework is designed to help enterprise customers drive up to a 35 percent reduction of remote access expenses, based on Nortel Networks estimates. The framework provides a simplified security infrastructure that can help enterprises to minimize total cost of ownership by eliminating the need to deploy separate solutions. A key element of this is centralized security management across a variety of platforms, enabling deployment of security policies in the most cost-effective and consistent manner.

The Virtual Private Networking (VPN) products introduced as part of this secure mobility framework include a gateway expected to be the industry's first to offer both Secure Socket Layer (SSL) and Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) VPNs from the same device.

Also introduced were a hardware solution that will bring SSL VPN capabilities to the existing Nortel Networks Contivity Secure IP Services Gateway portfolio and VPN gateway products; a new Contivity product that offers IPSec VPNs and firewalls for teleworkers and remote offices; a secure VPN portal solution; and enhancements to existing products that bring industry-leading security to both wired and wireless local area networks.

"Providing a comprehensive, integrated approach to managing and enabling secure remote access is critical in today's mobile environment," said John Girard, vice president and research director, Gartner. "The remote user needs to be able to focus on their job and not network access issues to be effective. Enterprises will benefit if they are able to use a single VPN platform to provision either SSL or IPSec with common interfaces for management, access controls and user interface."

"Analog Devices implemented a Contivity-based VPN solution almost three years ago," said Lawrence W. Loh, chief information officer, Analog Devices. "This has been very successful, and as a result our initial implementation of secure, Internet-based access has expanded to a much larger number of our employees and partners."

"Our workforce has become increasingly more mobile and we have expanded our use of converged applications, combining voice and data over a single connection," Loh said. "Nortel Networks secure mobility strategy is right on target, as it will integrate IPSec and SSL. It will also address the larger challenge of implementing a secure, multimedia-ready infrastructure across the multiple dimensions of security, access, administration and management."

Part of Nortel Networks "One Network. A World of Choice." enterprise technology vision, the secure mobility framework is designed to enable companies to increase the effectiveness of their business operations without compromising network performance or security, while supporting unrestricted mobility of business travelers and remote users.

"Nortel Networks understands the challenges of remote access security," said Atul Bhatnagar, vice president and general manager, Enterprise Data Networks, Nortel Networks. "The beauty of this solution is that it combines managed remote access, secure virtual private networks and advanced multimedia communication applications to deliver secure anywhere, anytime multimedia access. This approach is designed to increase employee productivity and offers the potential to yield a significantly-lowered total cost of ownership for a remote access infrastructure."

Managing a variety of different remote access methods, policies, clients, updates, patches and VPN solutions is complex, expensive and time-consuming. Nortel Networks secure mobility framework is designed to provide increased levels of access and simplify administration without compromising the security, control and manageability of existing VPN deployments.

Providing the foundation of the secure mobility framework, the following products are the latest additions to the company's security portfolio:

  • Nortel Networks VPN Gateway 3050 -- The industry's first to combine SSL VPN connectivity with IPSec VPNs, this product will provide the best of both worlds in remote access, enabling end-users to access the applications they require, regardless of whether they are using IPSec or SSL connections. The VPN Gateway 3050 will support up to 1,000 SSL or 500 IPSec tunnels, and dramatically simplifies the security infrastructure by having a single gateway to deploy and maintain for both types of access.

  • Nortel Network Contivity 200 VPN Switch -- This will build on the award-winning security capabilities of the Contivity product line in a package ideal for teleworkers and remote offices. Designed for simple deployment, Contivity 200 will cost-effectively provide VPNs, firewalls, protection from denial of service attacks and content filtering.

  • Nortel Networks Contivity Secure IP Services Gateway Portfolio -- A hardware upgrade will enable new and existing Contivity products to provide SSL VPNs, thus protecting existing customer investments and enhancing Contivity's award-winning IPSec VPN capabilities.

  • Nortel Networks Universal Remote Access Portal -- A portal solution that will determine the most appropriate VPN access via an SSL or IPSec VPN, depending on the situation of the end-user, the security profile established by the administrator, or the network resources they access.

  • Nortel Networks VPN Client Administrator -- Focused on customers that manage a large number of VPN users, the VPN Client Administrator will provide seamless automatic distribution of Contivity IPSec client and policy updates to end-users. This will eliminate complex technical hurdles to maintaining a secure VPN infrastructure.

Nortel Networks is an industry leader and innovator focused on transforming how the world communicates and exchanges information. The Company is supplying its service provider and enterprise customers with communications technology and infrastructure to enable value-added IP data, voice and multimedia services spanning Wireless Networks, Wireline Networks, Enterprise Networks, and Optical Networks. As a global company, Nortel Networks does business in more than 150 countries. More information about Nortel Networks can be found on the Web at http://www.nortelnetworks.com.

Certain information included in this press release is forward-looking and is subject to important risks and uncertainties. The results or events predicted in these statements may differ materially from actual results or events. Factors which could cause results or events to differ from current expectations include, among other things: the completion of the comprehensive review and the release of financial results and issuance of restated financial statements for 2000, 2001 and 2002 and the first and second quarters of 2003; the severity and duration of the industry adjustment and the continued reductions in spending by our customers; the sufficiency of our restructuring activities, including the potential for higher actual costs to be incurred in connection with restructuring actions compared to the estimated costs of such actions; fluctuations in operating results and general industry, economic and market conditions and growth rates; negative impacts on our gross margins; the ability to recruit and retain qualified employees; fluctuations in cash flow, the level of outstanding debt and our current debt ratings; the ability to meet the financial covenant in our credit facilities; the use of cash collateral to support our normal course business activities; the dependence on our subsidiaries for funding; the impact of our defined benefit plans and our deferred tax assets on our results of operations, cash flows and compliance with our financial covenant; the ability to integrate the operations and technologies of acquired businesses in an effective manner; the impact of rapid technological and market change; the impact of price and product competition; barriers to international growth and global economic conditions, particularly in emerging markets and including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of rationalization in the telecommunications industry; the dependence on new product development and our ability to predict market demand for particular products; the uncertainties of the Internet; the impact of the credit risks of our customers and the impact of customer financing and commitments; stock market volatility generally and as a result of acceleration of the settlement date or early settlement of our purchase contracts; the impact of the New York Stock Exchange minimum listing requirements and the proposed consolidation of our common shares; the impact of supply and outsourcing contracts that contain delivery and installation provisions, which, if not met, could result in the payment of substantial penalties or liquidated damages; the ability to obtain timely, adequate and reasonably priced component parts from suppliers and internal manufacturing capacity; the future success of our strategic alliances; and the adverse resolution of litigation and intellectual property disputes. For additional information with respect to certain of these and other factors, see the most recent Form 10-Q and Form 10-K filed by Nortel Networks with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, Nortel Networks disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks logo, the Globemark, Business Without Boundaries and Contivity are trademarks of Nortel Networks.

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