Dulles, VA. February 28, 2004 – Encore Networks, a leading developer of integrated network security and signaling interworking solutions, today announced that it has been awarded a five-year General Services Administration (GSA) Information Technology Contract. A GSA Schedule Contract is a prerequisite for simplifying the process of selling to Federal, State and Local Government Agencies and enables government customers to make purchases quickly and easily. Encore’s Schedule 70 Information Technology contract #GS-35F-0357R was facilitated through Federal Schedules Inc., the nation’s leading GSA Schedule Contract Consultant, serving thousands of clients across the United States and Internationally.

The GSA has developed the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) program, which is dedicated to negotiating and awarding contracts with vendors on behalf of Government Agencies. These contracts are long-term, Government-wide Acquisition Contracts (GWAC) containing pre-negotiated prices, delivery terms, warranties, and other terms and conditions.

“As the largest consumer in the world, the Federal Government has thousands of procurement regulations which have presented unique challenges for our commercial marketing and sales teams,” stated Mark Rafferty, Encore Networks Chief Financial Officer. “Now, Encore can use the GSA Schedule Contract as a means to dramatically decrease overall time and costs associated with selling to the Government by eliminating extensive bidding processes, complex RFP’s and lengthy contract negotiations.”

Encore Network’s BANDIT™ family of IP+Legacy VPN security appliances offers quick, secure network deployments for either permanent or temporary installations over wireless, satellite and terrestrial networks. Encore’s patent pending Selective Layer Encryption (SLE) allows encryption and VPN capabilities at full link speed over broadband satellite networks, while optimizing the performance of key Government applications.

Encore’s SignalPath™ Signaling Gateways, a line of advanced protocol converters, are designed to facilitate interoperability between incompatible international communications networks. SignalPath™ not only provides a seamless connection between disparate networks but also supports both protocol and rate conversion solving a range of interoperability challenges faced by U.S. Government facilities based in foreign countries. Through its SignalPath™ product line, Encore Networks provides the most comprehensive and scalable set of signaling inter-working applications in the industry and supports a long list of signaling variants such as C7, SS7, NI-2, ETSI ISDN, MF, R1, R2 and DTMF.