- More Information on Cisco 7500 Series
- More Information on Cisco 12000 Series
- Nasdaq's Web Site
- MCI's Web Site
WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 20, 1997 - The Nasdaq Stock Market and MCI (Nasdaq: MCIC) todayannounced development of a new communications infrastructure for its electronic trading networkthat in its first phase will more than double Nasdaq's speed and trading capacity. The newnetwork initially will be able to handle a four billion share day and can be scaled up to eightbillion shares per day. A new six-year, $600 million agreement between the two parties willrepresent MCI's largest commercial outsourcing contract to date.
Under terms of the new deal, MCI will replace the existing system that supported Nasdaq'srecent 1.37 billion share record day and create a network that will foster Nasdaq's growth intothe next millennium. Company officials said that the new Enterprise Wide Network II (EWN II)will employ state-of-art network hardware and software to produce one of the world's largest,most sophisticated, custom intranets, delivering time-sensitive information from Nasdaq'stechnology centers to traders nationwide.
"While the current system serves us extremely well, with projected increases in share volumeand market participants, we need to stay ahead of the curve and enhance our system now tohandle growth well into the future," said Frank Zarb, Chairman, CEO and President of theNational Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.(NASD). "To accomplish this, we once againturn to MCI to bring Nasdaq to a higher level of technology and performance."
Nasdaq set share volume records on October 28, 1997, as the first U.S. stock market to exceedone billion shares with a daily close of more than 1.37 billion shares traded. On that day,Nasdaq was the only U.S. stock market to display continuous real-time price quotes withoutinterruption or delay for all of its listed companies from open to close. As a result,investors were able to buy or sell any Nasdaq-listed stock at any time throughout the recordtrading day.
The upgrade, to be completed over an aggressive 18-month schedule, will use Digital EquipmentCorporation services and AlphaServer computers as well as Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO) 7500 series and12000 Gigabit Switch Routers throughout the custom, high-speed IP (Internet protocol) network,operating at speeds up to 45 Megabits per second. At the heart of the network, an MCI designedintelligent node architecture provides secure, reliable and simultaneous data transmission tobrokers monitoring stocks, placing trades and querying the market for real-time information ina PC environment.
MCI will continue to manage the network fully with dedicated staff and facilities located atNasdaq's data centers in Trumbull, Conn. and Rockville, Md., as well as MCI's NetworkOperations Center in Cary, N.C.
"MCI is proud of its long-standing association with The Nasdaq Stock Market as both atechnology and trading partner, " said Bert Roberts, MCI Chairman. "Together, we pioneered theconcept of a full-service data communications solution that has greatly contributed to ourrespective successes. We look forward to a continued, long-lasting relationship with the mosttechnologically advanced stock market in the world."
As Nasdaq's primary technology partner, MCI provides a variety of network management servicesfor Nasdaq, including the Intelligent Shared Network (ISN), the system used for Nasdaq's StockMarket Broadcast services, and dedicated internetMCI high-speed access to Nasdaq's Websites,http://www.nasdaq.com and http://www.nasdaq-trader.com.
Nasdaq
The Nasdaq Stock Market is the fastest growing stock market in the United States and theworld's largest electronic market. Nasdaq is a subsidiary of the NASD, the largest securitiesindustry self-regulatory organization in the United States. For more information on Nasdaq,visit its Web site at http://www.nasdaq.com.
MCI
MCI, headquartered in Washington, D.C., offers the industry's most comprehensive portfolio ofcommunication services. With 1996 revenues of $18.5 billion, MCI ranks as one of the world'slargest telecommunications companies. MCI is also the world's third largest carrier ofinternational voice traffic and operates one of the world's most advanced Internet networks.Since its founding in 1968, MCI has been a leader in bringing the benefits of long distancecompetition to businesses and consumers and is now leading the charge to open U.S. localcalling markets to competition. On November 10, 1997, MCI announced a definitive mergeragreement with WorldCom, Inc. (Nasdaq: WCOM), to form a new company called MCI WorldCom.
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is theworldwide leader in networking for the Internet. athttp://www.cisco.com.
Cisco IOS is a trademark, and Cisco, Cisco Systems, and the Cisco Systems logo areregistered trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. in the U.S. and certain other countries. All othertrademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners.
