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Coactive Networks Shatters Price Barriers with New IP Gateway to Home Control Systems

Coactive Connector® 2000 Series Provides Scalable, Flexible Home Telemetry Access For Under $200, Enabling AMR, Energy Management and Home Security Services

SAUSALITO, Calif., October 26, 1998 -- Coactive Networks, a pioneer in control network connectivity solutions, today announced its next-generation home telemetry gateway product family, the Coactive Connector® 2000 Series. The Coactive Connector 2000 Series delivers all of the features required for flexible access to home control systems, including both data logging and real-time monitoring and control, and incorporates distributed object technology which allows the deployment of systems scalable to millions of homes. The new product family breaks the industry’s deployment price barriers, and enables home telemetry solutions which support multiple services such as automatic meter reading (AMR), demand side management (DSM), home security, appliance monitoring, and home automation.

“As the utility industry continues to evolve under deregulation around the world, a combination of strong technology standards and new business models has made access to home control systems a clear competitive necessity,” said Adam Marsh, vice president of marketing for Coactive Networks. “Coactive provides the scalable connectivity needed for this access at a breakthrough price point, enabling the deployment of a single infrastructure to accommodate multiple services.”

About the Coactive Connector 2000 Series

The Coactive Connector 2000 Series addresses three factors critical to providing bundled telemetry services to the home, and thereby establishing a competitive edge for utilities. First, the wide-area connection to homes is via Internet protocol (IP), offering the advantage of multiple media including phone lines, cable, and wireless. This approach also takes advantage of the independently increasing demand for permanent Internet access from the home, whether by cable modem, ISDN, or xDSL. Second, the in-home connection to devices such as energy and security systems is via standard home control networking technologies such as EIA-709 (LonWorks), standards which have already been adopted by most control system manufacturers. And finally, the Coactive Connector 2000 Series incorporates the unique distributed object technology of the IOConnect Architecture™, providing the reliability and manageability required for this connectivity and allowing the deployment of systems scalable to millions of homes.

The Coactive Connector 2000 Series is priced to enable deployment of the services utilities want to provide today. In quantity, the base configuration gateway is available for under $200 per unit. General availability of the first product in the Coactive Connector 2000 Series is scheduled for Q1 1999. Customer trials of this product are beginning now. This breakthrough price point, together with the above three enabling features, allow utilities to move forward aggressively with a home telemetry solution which meets immediate revenue opportunities while providing a clear path to future enhancements and expanded services.

About Coactive Networks

Coactive Networks is a leading provider of open solutions for connecting control systems to enterprise networks and the Internet. The company offers a full line of routers, servers, and gateways for creating powerful next-generation applications, and is the market leader in providing connectivity solutions for EIA-709 (LonWorks), the leading control network. Coactive is a privately held corporation based in Sausalito, CA. Detailed information on Coactive products, news announcements, seminars, training, and support is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.coactive.com.

Coactive, the Coactive Logo, Coactive Connector, Router-LE, Router-LL, and IOConnect Architecture are trademarks or registered trademarks of Coactive Networks, Inc. in the US and other countries. LonWorks, LonTalk, and LonMaker are trademarks of Echelon Corporation. All other brands and names are the property of their respective owners.

Contact:

Annie Grace
415-440-9281
annie@hgpr.com

Sonia Gómez
415-289-1736
sgomez@coactive.com