EXFO Implements New Standards-Based Test, Revolutionizing Carrier Ethernet and Mobile Backhaul Service Deployments

EXFO is first to implement EtherSAM, based on the ITU-T Y.156sam standard-the only Ethernet service test fully adapted to today's mobile backhaul, commercial and wholesale services for turning up and troubleshooting eight times faster, with 100% first-time-right results.

QUEBEC CITY, Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - EXFO Electro-Optical Engineering Inc. (NASDAQ: EXFO, TSX: EXF) announced today the implementation of EtherSAM, a new Ethernet service testing methodology based on the ITU-T Y.156sam standard, into its Ethernet testing products. This methodology is completely adapted to today's reality and enables network operators to optimize the quality of service and reduce operational costs.

With the evolution of Ethernet services, widely used standards such as RFC 2544 are no longer adequate to fully validate service-level agreements (SLA). To address the limitations of current test methods, the ITU has introduced a new draft test standard, the ITU-T Y.156sam.

Working closely with the ITU-T standard body, EXFO is at the forefront of pioneering a new test methodology that recognizes the need for Ethernet networks to support new and more advanced services that come with next-generation network technologies, namely voice, video, e-mail, online trading and others. Due to their distinct nature, each service reacts differently to network characteristics such as latency, packet jitter and frame loss. Service providers must therefore know how each service behaves in every traffic prioritization scenario to properly configure their networks and ensure a consistent quality of service.

EtherSAM supports new multiservice offerings. It can simulate all types of services that will run on the network and simultaneously qualify all key SLA parameters for each of these services in a single test. It can validate the QoS mechanisms provisioned in the network to prioritize the different service types, resulting in more accurate validation, and eight times faster deployment and troubleshooting. EXFO's EtherSAM approach proves even more powerful as it executes the complete ITU-T Y.156sam test with bidirectional measurements. Key SLA parameters are measured independently in each test direction, thus providing 100% first-time-right service activation-that is the highest level of confidence in service testing.

"Innovation has always played a key role in the company's success and with the implementation of EtherSAM into our Ethernet portfolio, we are once again at the forefront of the innovation curve," said Etienne Gagnon, EXFO's Vice-President of Product Management and Marketing. "This new methodology will revolutionize how our customers will execute their Ethernet testing by saving time when turning up services and by providing 100% first-time-right results, therefore directly optimizing the quality of service and reducing the operational costs of our customers."

About EXFO

EXFO is a leading provider of test and service assurance solutions for network operators and equipment manufacturers in the global telecommunications industry. The Telecom Division, which accounts for almost 90% of the company's revenues, offers a wide range of innovative solutions to assess optical networks, from the core to access, as well as next-generation IP infrastructures and related triple-play services. The Life Sciences and Industrial Division offers solutions in medical device and opto-electronics assembly, fluorescence microscopy and other life science sectors. For more information, visit www.EXFO.com.

SOURCE EXFO ELECTRO-OPTICAL ENGINEERING INC.