Vitesse Unveils GigE Switches

CAMARILLO, Calif. -- Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. (Nasdaq: VTSS) today announced two Gigabit Ethernet Switches, Elstree™ (8-port) and Stansted™ (12-port), which marks the completion of the Vitesse Layer 2+ Gigabit Switch Family. Vitesse's entire Gigabit Ethernet Switch product line is in production and being used to convert existing 8-, 12-, 16- and 24-port, 10/100 Local Area Networking (LAN) switch platforms to triple speed (10/100/1000) Gigabit capabilities for faster and more efficient delivery of information to small/medium businesses (SMB) and enterprise desktops.

Vitesse supplies OEMs with Gigabit switches that expand their product portfolios and cost optimize their first generation switch designs with minimal design effort due to the software compatibility between all products within the Vitesse London Family™ of Gigabit Ethernet Switches. In turn, corporate network administrators can deploy cost effective Gigabit Ethernet devices and significantly increase productivity by providing their users with peak network performance as well as Gigabit burst capacity that is 10 times faster than current LAN installations.

Market research firm iSuppli forecasts that shipments of Gigabit Ethernet ports in switches and hubs will exceed those for Fast Ethernet ports in 2005, coming in at 70 million vs. nearly 62 million for Fast Ethernet. This implies that Gigabit Ethernet port shipments in switches and hubs will double in each of the next two years. The biggest driver for this rapid growth in Gigabit Ethernet in the network infrastructure is the rapid decline in prices for Gigabit Ethernet interfaces in the PC, which in turn is fueling a demand for higher bandwidth interconnectivity in the LAN and at the edge of the WAN.

To meet the demands of this industry-wide migration, Vitesse has formed Gigabit Ethernet design teams to assist customers in developing their high-speed systems, optimally priced its entire family of Gigabit switches and is delivering products today. This further positions Vitesse as the technology and price leader of fully integrated Gigabit Ethernet Switch ICs.

"Vitesse's complete Layer 2+ Gigabit Ethernet Switch portfolio is in production and provides customers real solutions today," said Jesper Knudsen, marketing director of Vitesse's SMB Gigabit Ethernet Switch ICs. "With our switches priced comparably to Fast Ethernet, and the immediate need for optimized network performance, network administrators are relying on Vitesse Gigabit solutions to increase productivity, enhance reliability, and ensure longevity of their networks."

Vitesse Semiconductor Corp.