Cisco and Verizon Clear the Road for Advanced Teleworker Programs

SAN JOSE, Calif. and NEW YORK - Responding to customer demand resulting from the expanding role of teleworking programs, Cisco Systems, Inc., and Verizon have joined forces to market high-speed, secure and reliable work-at-home services.

The two companies will target their offerings toward Fortune 1000 and government customers throughout the United States seeking identical business-class network access at home and the office. The services will be supported by Cisco equipment and delivered over an IP-enabled network made available by Verizon.

The teleworking solutions initially will be marketed to financial services and government customers in New York and Washington, D.C. Customers in these vertical markets were early adopters of teleworking and recognize the benefits of such programs, including increased productivity and employee retention, improved morale, lower real estate costs and a positive impact on the environment and individual health. Verizon is the first U.S. service provider to establish a formal arrangement with Cisco to co-market teleworking solutions.

"Teleworking brings a new dimension to worklife in America," said Eric Bruno, vice president, IP offer management, Verizon Enterprise Solutions Group. "The powerful combination of Cisco equipment and the IP enabled network made available by Verizon will help companies implement remote access programs. These programs can increase productivity and decrease costs, while assisting employees with balancing work-life issues, such as child or elder care, excessive commuting times or continuing their education."

As more companies have realized the positive impact of teleworking and remote access, its definition has expanded. Today, there are full-time and part-time teleworkers, as well as day extenders - employees working flexible hours at home to avoid commutes, handle global conference calls or be near family members. Products and services from Cisco and Verizon have evolved to meet the needs of these teleworkers and are now bundled together to create powerful solutions that provide high-speed network connectivity and seamless access to corporate applications while maintaining high levels of network security.

"Teleworking is no longer just about someone who regularly works from a home location," said Paulette Altmaier, vice president and general manager for the Cisco Premises Communications Group. "It is about ease of communication and access for the person who works flexible hours. Our companies are working together to increase the productivity of these workers, and the enterprise as a whole, by offering products that combine high-speed access with best-of-breed security and remote management capabilities."

Cisco will provide business-class platforms designed specifically for home-office applications, including equipment from the Cisco 800 and SOHO Series DSL and ISDN product lines. Verizon will provide IP-network transport and applications focusing on DSL (digital subscriber line) and ISDN (integrated services digital network) communications and connectivity technologies.

The announcement enhances the existing Verizon teleworking offering, known as Virtual Office Solutions, which is fully outsourced and Web-enabled. Offered through Verizon Enterprise Solution Group, Virtual Office Solutions is designed for managing enterprise teleworking and remote access programs.

Cisco provides the industry's most complete portfolio of business-class products that allow employees to connect back to the corporate network with broadband, VPN and wireless LAN solutions. As part of this portfolio, the Cisco 800 Series DSL and ISDN routers offer support for firewall security, virtual private networks, quality of service features, and remote management capabilities. This announcement furthers Cisco's goal to deliver reliable and scalable carrier-class IP technology to service provider customers and to connect those customers with Cisco's knowledge, understanding and relationships in the enterprise market.

Verizon Enterprise Solutions Group manages the design, operation and maintenance of end-to-end total network integrated solutions for large business and government customers across the United States. With over 15,000 employees in 46 states, Verizon Enterprise Solutions Group offers a complete range of basic and advanced communications products and services to meet the voice, video, data and IP-related needs of its customers. For more information on products and services available through Verizon Enterprise Solutions Group, please visit www.verizon.com/enterprisesolutions.

Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Cisco news and information are available at http://www.cisco.com.

Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 125 million access line equivalents and approximately 28 million wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. A Fortune 10 company with about 260,000 employees and more than $65 billion in annual revenues, Verizon's global presence extends to 40 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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