SAN JOSE, Calif., February 9, 2005 - Cisco Systems today announced an agreement with Merrill Lynch to deploy a Cisco Internet Protocol (IP) Communications system to support 14,000 financial advisors in approximately 600 Merrill Lynch offices nationwide.

Running on an end-to-end Cisco switching and routing foundation, the solution delivers IP telephone hardware and robust security architecture. The solution will be supported by a broad array of services including Cisco Remote Operations Services and Cisco Advanced Services. The system will be rolled out beginning in the second half of 2005.

"We are pleased to extend our long-standing relationship with Merrill Lynch to provide a highly secure IP Communications system to its extensive branch office environment," said Charles Giancarlo, senior vice president and chief technology officer for Cisco. "We will build a 'front-office' solution for Merrill Lynch that will be used by Financial Advisors for day-to-day interactions with their clients. This strategic deployment will provide Merrill Lynch with productivity benefits and cost savings, demonstrating the strong value proposition of Cisco's IP telephony business solutions."

"The Cisco IP telephony solution is a key component of the best-in-class technology platform we are deploying in our branch offices," said John Killeen, chief technology officer of the Merrill Lynch Global Private Client Group. "The integration of telephone and workstation represents a significant productivity enhancement for our Financial Advisors and their clients."

About Cisco IP Communications

Cisco IP Communications is a comprehensive system of enterprise-class solutions including IP telephony, unified communications, rich media IP audio and videoconferencing, IP video broadcasting and customer contact solutions that take advantage of customers' existing Cisco IP infrastructure to deliver new, converged applications. More information is available at: www.cisco.com/go/ipc.