MEF Approves New Technical Specifications and Addresses Operational Requirements

The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) approved three new specifications
at their most recent quarterly meeting, held in Orange County,
California. The new specifications address the areas of service
operations, administration and maintenance - OAM (MEF17), conformance
testing for circuit emulation over Ethernet (MEF 18) and testing the
UNI Type 1 (MEF 19). These specifications are available now on the MEF
website at www.metroethernetforum.org.

The MEF meeting was attended by more than 200 Carrier Ethernet
industry professionals - a record attendance reflecting the continued
growth in MEF membership and interest in MEF activities. Also
commenced were several major Carrier Ethernet initiatives addressing
such topics as: the use of Carrier Ethernet for mobile backhaul,
security, inter-carrier access services definition and Carrier
Ethernet services provisioning, assurance and billing.

"This was our largest meeting ever," commented Nan Chen,
President, MEF. "Over 80% of our current 124 member organizations were
represented - the level of involvement and enthusiasm we are seeing
from our members continues to expand and enables the important work of
the MEF. In fact, as our global membership continues to grow, we are
initiating regular regional meetings for the Asia Pacific and EMEA
regions, beginning with a marketing meeting in Beijing on September
6th and a full quarterly meeting in Paris on October 30th to November
1st."

Of particular interest was the completion and approval of three
new MEF specifications.

MEF 17 "Service OAM Framework and Requirements" addresses issues
including fault management, performance monitoring, auto-discovery
and both intra- and inter-provider service OAM - an increasingly
critical element for mass deployment of Carrier Ethernet services.

MEF 18 "Abstract Test Suite for Circuit Emulation Services"
completes the extensive specification work undertaken by the MEF
to enable delivery of T1/E1 services over Carrier Ethernet
networks by detailing testing procedures for MEF 8 conformance
(delivering Circuit Emulation Services over Ethernet). The MEF 3,
MEF 8 and MEF 18 Circuit Emulation specifications enable the
smooth evolution of service provider networks to Carrier Ethernet,
while maximizing the huge investment by service providers and
enterprises in their TDM installed base.

MEF 19 "Abstract Test Suite for UNI Type I". Both MEF 18 and MEF
19 " are directed towards future expansion of the MEF's acclaimed
certification program.

The initiatives recently introduced at the MEF include:

The Local Ethernet Access Services Working Group reflects the
current surge of membership among both Telcos and MSOs. It is
aimed at facilitating inter-carrier access service definition and
ordering - so that local service providers can extend their
effective Carrier Ethernet service 'footprints' by partnership
with providers of wholesale Carrier Ethernet services.

Mobile Backhaul Working Group, addressing both the technical and
marketing work needed to enable and promote the use of Carrier
Ethernet in mobile wireless backhaul.

The Provisioning, Assurance and Billing initiative will be
defining "best practices" for EMS, NMS, OSS and BSS operations to
meet the demand for scalable, accurate and rapid service
deployments.

Prior announcement of further initiatives being developed -
including Access Technologies, Cable and Security - underlined the
MEF's growing role as an incubator for industry-defined and
demand-driven solutions.

"Three new specifications and these initiatives are to smooth
potential operational challenges in transitioning to Carrier
Ethernet," explained Nan Chen, President, MEF. "Our activities
continue to grow and diversify as the breadth and depth of Carrier
Ethernet deployments intensify - the MEF continues to be the focal
point for collaboration and solutions to Carrier Ethernet industry
issues. With our growing involvement in Europe and Asia Pacific, the
new program of meetings starting in Beijing and Paris will also
promote closer involvement with our expanding membership."

About The Metro Ethernet Forum:

The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) is a global industry alliance
comprising more than 120 organizations including telecommunications
service providers, cable MSOs, network equipment/software
manufacturers, semiconductors vendors and testing organizations. The
MEF's mission is to accelerate the worldwide adoption of Carrier-class
Ethernet networks and services. The MEF develops Carrier Ethernet
technical specifications and implementation agreements to promote
interoperability and deployment of Carrier Ethernet worldwide.

For more information about the Forum, including a complete listing
of all current MEF members, please visit the MEF web site at
http://www.MetroEthernetForum.org/