Agere Systems and Hifn Develop Network Processor-Based Security Systems for Carrier-Class Network Infrastructure

Integrated Solution Cuts Software Effort And System Development Costs While Speeding Time-To Market and Adding Functionality

ALLENTOWN, Pa. and LOS GATOS, Calif., Feb. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Agere Systems (NYSE: AGRA - news), the world leader in communications components, and network security and flow classification market leader Hifn(TM) (Nasdaq: HIFN - news), will combine Hifn's security products and Agere's PayloadPlus® family of high-performance network processors into a single integrated package to enable carrier-class network OEMs to develop high- performance network security equipment easier, faster and at lower cost.

The two companies will integrate Agere's PayloadPlus family of high- performance network processors and Hifn's industry leading security processors into a single reference solution that will greatly reduce time-to-market and software development costs. The solution targets networking applications in metropolitan access networks (MAN).

"Combining Agere's scalable, PayloadPlus products with Hifn's security solutions will allow customers to develop entire families of multi-gigabit, programmable network equipment with enhanced security faster and at much lower cost," said Chris Kenber, Hifn chairman and CEO. "Agere's proven 2.5 gigabit solution is scalable to 10 gigabits and beyond, enabling wire rate network processor and security functions; together, Agere and Hifn's VPN and firewall security products offer an outstanding platform for network equipment developers."

Hifn's Intelligent Packet Processing (HIPP) family of processors delivers full duplex OC-12 system-level performance, scalable to OC-48, with secure tunnel processors for VPN applications and transaction processors for secure socket layer (SSL) e-commerce applications. Hifn's newly introduced 3010 Secure Flow Processor(TM) (SFP(TM)) is the first in a new class of security processors that greatly improve the performance and effectiveness of firewalls. SFP enables stateful classification (the identification of protocols or application flows that each packet belongs to) of data flows at up to 4 gigabits per second, making it possible for firewalls to apply policies at previously unattainable speeds, using software-based methods. SFP also provides hardware acceleration of advanced security functions such as denial of service (DoS) prevention, intrusion detection services (IDS) and virus scanning.

"This collaboration is an unusually good fit that will bring new features and benefits to our customers faster and at lower prices than before," says Ford Tamer, vice president of Agere's processing, aggregation and switching group. "Hifn has a proven leadership position in traditional cryptography- based security solutions, and is now pioneering a new security processor class with its unique SFP firewall accelerator. Together we'll be able to produce reference designs and related solutions that deliver the level of security, network processing power and integration that our customers are looking for," he said. "This in turn will further reduce the time it takes to bring products to market -- one of the most critical needs of our customers."

Hifn's products include hardware and software that provide a full security reference solution for OEMs to design systems. These products include the Hifn Security Platform (HSP), a uniform software interface to host computers in routers and other high-performance network equipment, allowing manufacturers to benefit rapidly from advances in security processor performance, while preserving their software investment.

Agere's PayloadPlus network processing solution provides hardware and software for next-generation, higher-performance Internet infrastructure. Agere's highly programmable PayloadPlus network processor family can enable enterprise, datacom and telecom equipment manufacturers to build flexible infrastructure equipment, in turn allowing service providers to introduce new services and billing arrangements in less time and upgrade to newer services over time.

The PayloadPlus family includes both an OC-48c and OC-192c solution. The OC-48c chip set consists of three chips: the Fast Pattern Processor (FPP), the Routing Switch Processor (RSP) and the Agere System Interface (ASI). Agere has also announced a co-processor to the OC-48c chip set called the Voice Packet Processor (VPP) for AAL2 voice termination and sub-channel switching applications and an OC-192c chip set comprised of the NP10 and TM10 components. Both solutions are fully code-compatible with Agere's high-level Functional Programming Language (FPL).

For more product information, customers may visit Agere's Web site at http://www.agere.com or contact one of Agere's regional sales offices. Customers in the U.S. may also call the Agere Systems Customer Response Center at 1-800-372-2447 and ask for Dept. A17. Customers in Canada may call 1-800-553-2448. Customers outside those countries may call +1-610-712-4323. Fax inquiries may be directed to +1-610-712-4106, or email queries to docmaster@agere.com. Written inquiries should be sent to Agere Systems, Room 30L-15P BA, 555 Union Blvd., Allentown, Pa. 18109, USA.

About Hifn

Hifn, of Los Gatos, Calif., makes integrated circuits and software for network infrastructure developers. Hifn's integrated data flow technology enables intelligent secure networks with compression, encryption and application-aware classification. This is central to the growth of the Internet, helping to make electronic mail, web browsing, Internet shopping and multimedia communications better, faster and more secure. Most of the major network equipment manufacturers use Hifn's patented technology to improve packet processing.

Hifn was founded in 1996 and is traded on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange under the HIFN symbol. For more information, contact: Hifn, 750 University Avenue, Los Gatos, CA 95032. Phone: 408-399-3500. Fax: 408-399-3501. Web: http://www.hifn.com.

About Agere Systems

Agere Systems is the world's No.1 provider of components for communications applications with leadership in optical components and integrated circuits. This dual capability uniquely positions Agere to deliver integrated solutions that form the building blocks for advanced wired, wireless, and optical communications networks. Agere also designs and manufactures a wide range of semiconductor solutions for communications-related devices used by consumers such as cellular phones, modems, and hard disk drives for personal computers and workstations. In addition, the company supplies complete wireless computer networking solutions through the ORiNOCO(TM) product line. More information about Agere Systems is available from its Web site at http://www.agere.com.

PayloadPlus is a registered trademark of Agere Systems. Hi/fn and LZS are registered trademarks of Hi/fn®, Inc. Hifn, Secure Flow Processor and MeterFlow are trademarks of Hifn, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

This release contains forward-looking statements based on information available to Agere as of the date hereof. Agere's actual results could differ materially from the results stated or implied by such forward-looking statements due to a number of risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, completion of the distribution of Agere stock by Lucent Technologies Inc., customer demand for our products and services, control of costs and expenses, timely completion of employment reductions and other restructuring activities, price and product competition, keeping pace with technological change, dependence on new product development, reliance on major customers and suppliers, availability of manufacturing capacity, components and materials, general industry and market conditions and general domestic and international economic conditions including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations. For a further discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties, see our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2001. Agere disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.