Zhone Adds Five GPON Deployments

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Zhone Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZHNE), a global pioneer in network access solutions, announced today that its industry-leading MXK(TM) system has been selected by Communication Partner SRL for five GPON deployments in the Argentinean provinces of Buenos Aires, Córdoba and Neuquén. The MXK will provide high speed fiber access to subscribers of four different telephone cooperatives and one housing development. The products selected are the MXK 819 and 319, 2424 and 2426 ONTs series. The combination of these solutions provides access to triple play and high-bandwidth business services over any FTTx architecture.

"Zhone's MXK and ONT solutions are the perfect fit for the independent telephone cooperative market in Argentina," says Fernando Yubero, general manager of Communication Partner SRL. "The flexibility of mixing xDSL technologies with GPON or Active Ethernet was a key factor in choosing the MXK for these deployments. The large variety of indoor and outdoor ONTs available from Zhone enables us to offer an efficient and cost effective way to deploy fiber based solutions for a variety of customers including telephone companies and residential developments."

"The ability of the MXK to provide fiber access for a variety of applications has been repeatedly demonstrated in similar projects worldwide," says Brian Caskey, chief marketing officer for Zhone. "Zhone's success in building the telecom industry's most comprehensive portfolio of scalable FTTx solutions is a direct reflection of the reliability of our products and the value provided to our customers. These new deployments in Argentina are proof that systems integrators in the growing Latin America market continue to recognize Zhone as a leading provider of fiber access solutions."

Zhone Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: ZHNE)