INTERCONNECTS

YOKOHAMA, JAPAN -- Cisco Systems, Inc., (NASDAQ:CSCO) a worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, today announces the availability of the second phase of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) features in Cisco IOS(R) Software. These features, available across the widest breadth of platforms in the industry, build on Cisco's delivery of the industry's first IPv6 solution in May 2001. Cisco's Phase II functionality further enables the integration of IPv6 with the current IPv4-based Internet, which is essential to emerging IPv6 markets and applications such as mobile data, home access and carrier infrastructure. "In Japan and other Asia-Pacific countries, the demand for IP addresses is being driven by the proliferation of mobile phones as well as Internet-based gaming and telephony applications," states Lawrence Orans, senior analyst, Gartner, Inc. "IPv6 solves this problem, and as it becomes more widely deployed, the need for more advanced IPv6 functionality will also increase in order to address areas such as quality of service, network management tools and route optimization for mobile devices." "The key to successfully deploying IPv6 services is the ability to integrate with the existing IPv4 infrastructure and, therefore, to migrate customers and applications seamlessly," says Joel Bion, vice president of Cisco's Internet Technologies Division. "Cisco's Phase II solution enables this integration by providing unique services such as protocol translation between IPv6 and IPv4 networks, which preserves full IP access to Internet services as IPv6 is rolled out. Cisco also enables integration with Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS), which allows service providers to offer IPv6 access to their customers with minimal upgrades to their existing infrastructure." Additionally, Cisco's IPv6 Phase II solution introduces comprehensive security support, scalable routing, management services and distributed switching. Cisco is also demonstrating forthcoming IPv6 Phase III capabilities including native support for the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) routing protocol for large-scale deployments and hardware-accelerated IPv6 forwarding on the Cisco 12000 Series Internet Router at the IPv6 Forum Summit in Japan on December 3rd. As market requirements mature and adoption continues, Cisco will continue to lead in the delivery of additional standards-compliant IPv6 services via Cisco IOS Software across its comprehensive platform portfolio. For more information visit www.cisco.com