Concert Communications Services Selects NetScout Systems Web-Based Network Management Solutions

WESTFORD, Mass., November 9, 1998 NetScout Systems, Inc., a leader in business-oriented Application Flow Management for the enterprise network, today announced an agreement with Concert Communications Services, Reston, Virginia, to deliver web-based network management solutions to Concert customers in more than 50 countries.

Under the terms of the agreement, NetScout Systems will provide Concert with products from its family of enterprise network management solutions, which track application flows and their impact on network operations and business productivity. Concert will bundle NetScout Systems products with its Concert Frame Relay Service, which is available to international customers from Concerts 47 worldwide distributors. NetScout Systems solutions for Concerts Frame Relay Service include intelligent probes and agents; NetScout Server for data collection and sorting; and a range of data presentation, reporting and analysis products. Among these are NetScout Manager Plus, for analyzing and reporting data from network devices; WebCast, for providing Web-based views of reports; and AppScout, for monitoring browser-based reports on specific applications, such as SAP/R3.

We chose NetScout Systems because of their sophisticated, standards-based management solutions, which will provide more proactive and efficient network management capabilities for Concerts customers, said Tim Arnold, director, Concert Frame Relay Service. NetScout Systems products are enabling us to develop a range of services to ensure that Concert Frame Relay Services best supports our customers mission critical applications.

NetScout Systems is delighted to be associated with one of the worlds leading providers of global telecommunications services, said Nate Kalowski, vice president of business development for NetScout Systems. Our agreement with Concert will immediately boost our international sales presence through their alliance with 47 distributors in 52 countries. In addition, because Concert takes the same business-oriented approach to network management as we do, this will bring innovative, cost-effective solutions to customers.

Business-Oriented Application Flow Management for the Network Through its family of products based on the Application Flow Management architecture, NetScout Systems provides business-oriented network management to its customers. Business-oriented network management helps customers use their investments in enterprise network infrastructures and mission-critical applications more efficiently. This ensures optimum network performance to serve the ever-changing needs of the global enterprise, while preventing unnecessary investments in new network resources.NetScout Systems Application Flow Management solution addresses the enterprise network as both a system of complex technologies and a business enabler. It provides network managers as well as application and business managers with the information required to effectively control the network. It also provides a common platform on which they can communicate, allowing them to manage networks by tracking application flows and their impact on network operations and business productivity.

Bridging the Gap Between the Network and the Business

The Application Flow Management architecture connects the network to the business by offering solutions that manage both the network infrastructure and the applications flowing across it that support the business. NetScout Systems offers comprehensive, standards-based, Application Flow Management solutions that deliver real-time visibility of applications running on the enterprise network regardless of protocol or topology -- supporting shared and switched LANs, VLANs, OC3ATM, WANs, Frame Relay, T1/E1, T3/E3, Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, FDDI, and Token Ring. These solutions provide a view into network performance that enables network and application managers to troubleshoot network problems, identify network capacity requirements, optimize network performance, develop and measure network policies and deliver on service level agreements.

About Concert Communications Services

Concert Communications Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of British Telecommunications plc headquartered in Reston, Va., develops advanced networking services for global companies. Today, Concert's intelligent network platform provides an array of global communications services to more than 4,400 companies in over 50 countries. Concert services are available through 47 distributors worldwide.

In July 1998, BT and AT&T announced an agreement to form a new global joint venture to serve the communications needs of multinational companies. The joint venture, which will include Concert, is expected to be completed by fall 1999. For further information, access their web site at www.concert.com.