SAN JOSE, Calif., August 22, 2000-To better serve students and faculty, leading educational institutions, including The Virginia Community College System and Utah Education Network, announced today they are deploying advanced multiservice networks from Cisco Systems that enable new applications, while reducing infrastructure costs with network consolidation.

With their Cisco multiservice networks, these educational facilities have implemented new services such as interactive voice database services, web-based registration systems, and innovative Web-based distance learning classes.

"The Internet can help solve a key challenge for educators who face an increasingly difficult task in trying to reach broader student audiences in new and compelling ways while maintaining relatively fixed budgets," said Dave Frampton, director of marketing for Cisco's IP Access Business Unit. "Cisco's packet voice and video solutions enable compelling media options while extending the reach of new educational services. This capability, combined with the tremendous cost savings of consolidating multiple legacy networks, makes a Cisco end-to-end multiservice network an ideal choice for innovative educators."

Virginia Community College System: Voice Registration and Video Distance Learning With a Voice-over-IP, ATM-Based Network

The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) network connects 23 colleges and 39 campuses throughout the State of Virginia. VCCS had a very dynamic and robust ATM network based on Cisco technology already installed, but decided to upgrade to a multiservice network in order to save telephony costs and develop a more powerful, interactive voice response system for student registration.

The VCSS IT team evolved its existing data infrastructure into a VoIP network by deploying one Cisco 3640 series multiservice access router at each of the 39 school campuses. Each Cisco 3640 router has a new T-1 card that connects directly into the local private branch exchange (PBX) and Centrex systems. In addition, six voice response servers are centrally located to manage voice registration.

"The VCSS has saved about $750 thousand in long-distance charges per year, plus the $1.6 million it would have cost to purchase 39 voice response servers for all our campuses," said Arnold Oliver, chancellor of Virginia Community College System. "With the Cisco multiservice network, VCCS has implemented Web capabilities to its registration system, higher-quality compressed video for distance learning classes, as well as Web-based distance learning classes to every student in Virginia."

Utah Education Network: Distance Learning Over an ATM-Based Multiservice Network

The Utah Education Network (UEN) provides data connectivity to grades K-12 and nine colleges and universities throughout the state of Utah. Internet access and distance learning video is UEN's specialty, with service to over 200 locations. UEN had three distinct proprietary networks for voice, video and data, and experienced severe bandwidth limitations, before it upgraded to a multiservice network with Cisco equipment. Voice costs were also an issue. A satellite system managing rural calls from students to professors was expensive, and UEN wanted a lower cost solution for voice that would also manage data.

The UEN IT team implemented a Cisco multiservice network that included multiport T1/E1 ATM network modules with IMA for managing increased video density at remote distance learning locations. Specifically, fifty Cisco 3600 Series multiservice access routers with IMA were installed at remote locations. IMA modules were added to the MGX 8550 at nine major hub locations and connected directly into video codecs, existing private branch exchanges (PBXs), and data end-sites. Two MGX 8800 wide-area edge switches provide integrated IP and ATM services, and five MGX 8220 edge concentrators provide ATM services. All voice connections are analog.

"The Cisco IMA solution has kept our operational costs quite reasonable; if we amortize the equipment over five years, the costs are less than we've been paying for the three separate networks," said Jim Stewart, director of technical services for UEN. "In addition, the voice quality is excellent, the network is easier to manage than three separate networks, and as density increases we can just add more modules to other remote locations."