Strato Medien Makes World's Highest-Capacity Internet Router from Cisco Systems a Cornerstone of Its IP Next-Generation Network

Cisco Systems(R) (NASDAQ:CSCO) today announced that European Webhosting provider Strato Medien AG has deployed a Cisco(R) InternetProtocol Next-Generation Network (IP NGN) featuring the Cisco CarrierRouting System (CRS-1) -- the world's highest-capacity IP core networkrouting system - to handle rapidly increasing volumes of data traffic.With more than 2 million domains and 1 million customer contracts,Strato requires a heavy-duty next-generation network platform tomanage current monthly increases in data traffic of more than 20percent. Already one of Europe's leading Internet service providers,the company recently announced the introduction of its Web hostingservices in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy andSpain.

From its data centers in Berlin and Karlsruhe, Strato offers itsbusiness and private customers Web hosting, broadband Internet access(DSL), e-commerce solutions, dedicated servers and a contentmanagement system for the creation of Web sites. To offer theseservices without interruption, Strato places great importance on thecontinuous operation of the core routing platform. Given its newcustomers and future services, Strato expects a continuation ofabove-average data growth, which requires a highly scalable andflexible routing platform for maximum system longevity.

"The Cisco CRS-1 is an extremely high-capacity platform with greatlongevity, allowing us to avoid having to replace the technology on aregular basis to accommodate higher bandwidths and traffic volumes,"said Rene Wienholtz, member of the board of Strato Rechenzentrum AG."The Cisco CRS-1 system meets all our requirements in terms ofsecurity, reliability and redundancy."

"As one of the fastest-growing Web hosting providers, Strato hasto rely on a network that can be upgraded without serviceinterruptions to keep pace with a rapidly expanding customer base andgrowing traffic requirements," said Michael Ganser, vice president andgeneral manager, Cisco Systems Germany. "We are happy to support theEuropean expansion of Strato with the Cisco CRS-1, thehighly-available core of our IP Next-Generation Network architecture."

In addition to the CRS-1, Strato uses numerous other Cisco routingand switching components in its IP NGN infrastructure. For example,the corporation employs Cisco XR 12000 Series Routers with theself-healing Cisco IOS(R) XR operating system in its Karlsruheoperations centre, together with Cisco Catalyst(R) 6500 SeriesSwitches.

The new carrier routing system was implemented and configured byCisco Gold Certified Partner avodaq AG.

Technical details of the CRS-1

The Cisco CRS-1 helps service providers scale their core networkcapacity from 640 gigabits per second to 92 terabits per second. As aresult, the system can help extend the scalability of service providernetworks and support the convergence of networks and services. Withthe aim of addressing the high availability requirements of today'soperators, the Cisco CRS-1 provides features such as continuousoperation during maintenance and upgrades. The IOS XR operating systemsupports fault containment, autorecovery and in-service upgrades atthe processing level as well.

About Strato Medien AG

STRATO, based in Berlin, Germany, is one of the market leadersamong European Internet service providers with two million domains anda million customer contracts. Besides complete domain packages and DSLbroadband access, STRATO markets high-quality servers and solutions inthe area of e-commerce at competitive price levels. All STRATO Webservices are provided on servers at the high-performance computingcenters in Berlin and Karlsruhe. An ultra-modern and multiplyprotected "load-balanced" server farm ensures high performance of theWeb presences even during peak loads. STRATO AG was the first majorEuropean Web host to receive the internationally coveted GermanTechnical Control Board (TUV) seal "BS7799" for the reliability of itscomputing centers and statements regarding security and dataavailability.

STRATO is a wholly owned subsidiary of freenet.de AG, a listedInternet and telecommunications company. STRATO benefits from thecompetence of its parent company and utilizes existing group synergiesto offer its customers exceptional services: freenet.de AG is one ofthe few providers to have its own network and hence a powerfulinfrastructure for data and speech exchange. This enables freenet.deAG to offer customers throughout the group an optimum tariff plans andthe highest level of performance as well as innovative products likethe DSL telephony package iPhone.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), is the worldwide leader innetworking for the Internet. Information on Cisco can be found athttp://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go tohttp://newsroom.cisco.com. Cisco equipment in Europe is supplied byCisco Systems International BV, a wholly owned subsidiary of CiscoSystems, Inc.

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