BOSTON, MA - Nortel Networks* [NYSE: NT/TSE: NTL] announced today that EarthLink [NASDAQ: ELNK], the world's largest independent Internet Service Provider (ISP), has contracted Nortel Networks to deploy up to 42,000 ports of its industry-leading CVX* 1800 carrier-class access switch by the end of calendar year 1999. The deployment will expand EarthLink's in-house "Mega POP (Point of Presence)" servicing the company's Southern California members.

EarthLink's evaluation of remote access products resulted in the decision of Nortel Networks' CVX 1800 as the ISP's solution-of-choice for expanding their Internet access capabilities. The CVX 1800 surpasses all other solutions on the market in five key areas-- scalability, performance and quality of service (QoS), reliability, multi-service capacity and manageability. It is also the only access switch designed to fully support multiple services including dial-up access, fax and Voice over IP (VoIP).

"We evaluated the market's leading next-generation switches, and chose Nortel Networks because of the CVX 1800's superior density and performance," said Steve Dougherty, director of Internet operations at EarthLink. "The CVX 1800 offers the highest number of modems of any product available. We were looking for a robust and stable platform that also fit easily into our existing network."

Nortel Networks will deliver a total of 32 CVX 1800's, providing EarthLink with a number of ways to enhance their competitive position in the remote access wholesale market, while fulfilling their customer's needs.

"As the highest performing access switch in the industry today, the CVX 1800 provides unparalleled capacity for emerging applications such as ISP dial-up termination and wholesale Internet access and outsourcing," said Paul Gustafson, vice president and general manager of Nortel Networks' remote access business. "The CVX 1800's high performance architecture is ideal for the future delivery of VoIP applications."

The Nortel Networks' CVX 1800's highly reliable platform was assessed as being key to EarthLink for continuing to elevate performance and improve customer satisfaction. Benefiting from a redundant architecture, hot-swappable cards and a mid-plane design, service degradation on the CVX 1800 can be resolved quickly with no impact to end-users. Its assurance of consistent performance, as well as guaranteed levels and different classes of service, were also critical to EarthLink's decision.

Dougherty added, "The density, manageability, and scalability of the CVX 1800 platform provides EarthLink with competitive cost savings, and allows us to more effectively deploy our personnel and physical resources in support of our membership."

About Nortel Networks' CVX 1800 Carrier-Class Access Switch

Designed for central office and major ISP POP environments, the CVX 1800 is an 18-slot access switch that aggregates high-volume dial-up for reliable transport over the public network and the Internet. The system's innovative Flow-Through* architecture incorporates a range of powerful features for superior performance: non-blocking parallel buses that transfer data in their native format minus overhead, and a switch-controller design that allows data to flow efficiently through the switching fabric without the delays traditionally caused by routing and switching decisions.

With the highest modem/ISDN density in the industry, the CVX 1800 handles up to 1,344 modems/ISDN calls per chassis, or 5,376 calls in a standard 7-foot telco rack. Offering true central-office readiness, it is the only access switch designed to meet NEBS Level 3 standards, with cards that are both redundant and hot swappable.

Nortel Networks' CVX 1800 offers several differentiating factors including the seamless delivery of multiple services, which implements any service mix at different times and locations. Its Virtual POP technology enables wholesale Internet access and outsourced corporate remote access allowing EarthLink a competitive advantage to service multiple customers with minimal capital investment.

Representative of Nortel Networks Unified Networks vision, the CVX 1800 also provides a scalable network management system (NMS), supporting all standard network interfaces. With easy maintenance and in-service upgrades, the CVX 1800 is designed for NEBS Level 3 certification, Earthquake Zone 4, and Year 2000 compliance.

EarthLink is one of the world's leading Internet service providers. Through its unified EarthLink Sprint Internet access service, the company makes the Internet relevant and productive to more than a million individuals and businesses every day. Headquartered in Pasadena, EarthLink provides a full range of innovative access and hosting solutions to thousands of communities internationally from more than 1,700 points of presence. EarthLink and Sprint Corporation (NYSE: FON) have formed a broad business relationship to create an Internet service with the potential to reach millions of new customers. Sprint is a global communications company and one of the world's largest carriers of Internet traffic. Information about EarthLink and EarthLink Sprint services is available by calling 800-395-8425 and through EarthLink's Web site at www.earthlink.net.

Nortel Networks works with customers worldwide to design, build, and deliver telephony and IP-optimized networks. Customers include public and private enterprises and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance, cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers, and utilities.

Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges. Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide.

*Nortel Networks, the Nortel Globemark, Unified Networks and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Northern Telecom Limited

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