ATLANTA -- Verso Technologies (Nasdaq: VRSO - News), a global provider of next generation network solutions, announced today that Verso and IBM have executed a strategic teaming agreement to offer the Verso MetroNet VoIP Overlay solution on the IBM® eServer(TM) BladeCenter platform. The joint offering creates a Linux-based VoIP solution running on the IBM eServer BladeCenter and will be globally positioned and marketed by both companies.

The Verso and IBM solution will target providers in the Tier-2 through Tier-4 markets that require deployment of an open standards, cost-effective next generation network (NGN) softswitch platform. The solution integrates and packages a standard set of features and capabilities which includes the Verso Clarent® endpoint (Class-5) and tandem (Class-4) switching technologies as well as other core capabilities and services. The vertically integrated softswitch offering is designed to maximize a provider's ability to quickly and easily deploy Voice over Broadband (VoBB) services to enterprise as well as residential subscribers and enables new services such as prepaid, voicemail and hosted PBX. The solution can be deployed over any broadband medium including cable, xDSL, wireless, fiber, satellite, and microwave.

The partnership will provide both parties with mutual visibility and access to emerging VoIP opportunities in niche markets. Currently, both companies are collaborating on several large scale deployments in India, one of which is expected to be the largest VoIP deployment in the world to date.

"We are proud that IBM, the world's leading systems integrator and the leader in delivering complex solutions for carriers, has incorporated the Verso MetroNet VoIP Overlay solution as a key component in its telecom portfolio," said Monty Bannerman, chief executive officer, Verso Technologies. "We can reach new markets with a Linux-based VoIP platform running on the IBM BladeCenter platform, which assists us in our goal of becoming a major supplier of VoIP solutions to the carrier markets. Access to IBM global markets expands Verso's distribution channel and provides access to a substantial piece of the global VoIP market."

Verso Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: VRSO)

IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM)