Aspect Leverages Acme Packet Enterprise SBCs with Verizon IP Trunking and Microsoft® Lync™

BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Acme Packet® (NASDAQ: APKT), the leader in session border control solutions, today announced that Chelmsford, Mass.-based Aspect®, a global provider of unified communications and collaboration (UC&C) services and software, has deployed Acme Packet’s Net-Net® Session Director (SD) enterprise session border controller (E-SBC) to enable the SIP trunking connection between Aspect’s Microsoft Lync 2010 UC&C environment and Verizon’s IP Trunking service. The Net-Net SD was recently qualified under Microsoft’s Unified Communications Open Interoperability Program (UC OIP) with Microsoft’s Lync 2010 Server and Verizon’s IP Trunking service.

“Enterprises making the transition from TDM to IP want the security of knowing that their communications environments are highly reliable and will interoperate seamlessly with SIP trunking services”

Aspect helps organizations apply Microsoft® unified communications and collaboration to enable its customers to achieve optimal results through enhanced business processes across the enterprise and in the contact center. Aspect also leverages Microsoft Lync globally for all of its own voice and voicemail services, audio and web conferencing, instant messaging (IM) and presence. Aspect was among the first of Verizon’s and Microsoft’s mutual customers to benefit from effectively employing Microsoft unified communications applications across Verizon’s IP Trunking solution for more cost-effective and high-performance application delivery.

Verizon IP Trunking features the company’s Burstable Enterprise Shared Trunk (BEST) capability, which enables customers to use idle trunk capacity at one location to accommodate an increase in traffic at another. This reduces the total number of voice communications trunks required to link the company's locations, in addition to offering cost savings.

Acme Packet’s E-SBC connects Aspect’s global employees to users beyond its Microsoft Lync domain via the Verizon IP Trunking service. In this role, the E-SBC routes SIP sessions, applies signaling and media controls to incoming and outbound SIP session traffic, and establishes demarcation between the Aspect and Verizon networks. By implementing Verizon’s award-winning VoIP solutions, including the company’s IP Trunking service, Aspect has been able to achieve greater control over its call routing and management, as well as significant savings through the consolidation of traditional local access lines and trunks.

“As part of our deployment of Microsoft Lync, we needed to ensure that we could communicate reliably with the outside world, and Acme Packet plays a key role in making that happen,” said Jamie Ryan, Aspect’s Senior Vice President, Information Technology and Chief Information Officer. “The fact that Acme Packet’s E-SBC was UCOIP-qualified made it an easy choice for deployment with our Verizon IP Trunking service.”

“Enterprises making the transition from TDM to IP want the security of knowing that their communications environments are highly reliable and will interoperate seamlessly with SIP trunking services,” said Dino Di Palma, Acme Packet’s senior vice president of worldwide sales and business development. “Our E-SBCs are a great fit for enterprises like Aspect, who require a fully-qualified system to ensure the availability of its UC infrastructure, services and applications.”

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, NASDAQ:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 93 million customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 195,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of $106.6 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

About Acme Packet

Acme Packet (NASDAQ:APKT), the leader in session border control solutions, enables the trusted, first-class delivery of next-generation voice, data and unified communications services and applications across IP networks. Our Net-Net product family fulfills demanding security, service assurance and regulatory requirements in service provider, enterprise and contact center networks. Based in Bedford, Massachusetts, Acme Packet designs and manufactures its products in the USA, selling them through over 140 reseller partners worldwide. More than 1,300 customers in 105 countries have deployed over 11,000 Acme Packet systems, including 90 of the top 100 service providers and 30 of the Fortune 100. For more information visit www.acmepacket.com.

Acme Packet Safe Harbor Statement

Statements contained herein that are not historical fact may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements may relate, among other things, to our position in the session border control market, our expected financial and operating results, our ability to establish and maintain intellectual property rights, our ability to build and grow Acme Packet, the benefits and advantages of our products, including any enhancements or new features, services and programs, and our ability to achieve our goals, plans and objectives. Such forward-looking statements do not constitute guarantees of future performance and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. These include, but are not limited to: difficulties in growing our customer base, difficulties leveraging market opportunities, difficulties providing solutions that meet the needs of customers, poor product sales, long sales cycles, difficulty developing new products, difficulty in relationships with vendors and partners, higher risk in international operations, difficulty managing rapid growth, and increased competition. Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially form those projected or suggested in any forward-looking statements are contained in our recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in such filings.