VDSLPlus – Data Rates Up to 150Mbps and Extended Reach Exceeding 4 KM

Addressing the market demand for ever greater reach for VDSL and ever greater bandwidth over a single pair, Infineon Technologies (FSE/NYSE: IFX) and Metalink (Nasdaq: MTLK), today announced they are each developing VDSLPlus, which introduces a fifth-band extension of standard VDSL technology. VDSLPlus will enable service providers to offer scalable DSL services ranging from short range applications at data rates up to 150 Megabits per second (Mbps), to long reach applications that allow for more than 4Mbps rates over distances of 4km (13,200 ft) using the same line-card and Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) designs.

VDSLPlus will use a new frequency “band” above the current 12 MHz limit, as defined by international VDSL standards, to achieve the highest speeds ever reached in data transmission over standard twisted-pair copper wire. The benefits of the extended QAM VDSL technology include:

• Delivery of over 150 Mbps aggregated bandwidth over single-pair copper
  wire – at more than 300m (1000 feet).
• Reach of over 4km (13,200 feet) at speeds exceeding 4 Mbps.
• Compliance with all relevant VDSL standards’ requirements including:
  Band Plan 998, 997, and those defined by the Chinese CTSI as well as any
  proprietary band plans.
• Spectral compatibility and co-existence with narrowband and legacy DSL
  services including POTS, EuroISDN, TCM-ISDN and ADSL.
• Support for both Ethernet and ATM over VDSL

“Infineon and Metalink continuously work to extend the capabilities of QAM VDSL, each making great strides in advancing the technology. As Service Providers and Carriers have mass deployed and gotten familiar with QAM VDSL over the four years it has been in the market, their demands have grown for increased VDSL bandwidth and reach, while they want QAM to maintain its highly cost effective, scalable deployment model. Metalink and Infineon are committed to collaborating with other industry leaders in extending the open QAM VDSL specifications and definitions to continuously meet this demand while preserving strict compliance to international standards,” said Tzvika Shukhman, Chairman and CEO of Metalink.

Metalink and Infineon continue to be committed to teaming with other QAM PHY and system companies to promote VDSLPlus standardization in the various standar-dization bodies and to extend the companies’ already proven interoperability to the new technology. The two companies are the only suppliers to have demonstrated fully interoperable, commercially available VDSL products.
” The accelerated market demand for enhanced VDSL drives the cooperation between Metalink and Infineon, especially in Asia Pacific and Japan where QAM VDSL is a huge ongoing success. VDSLPlus is an extension to field-proven QAM-VDSL technology, incorporating enhanced integration levels, higher bandwidth capacity, and greater reach capabilities. With more than two million QAM VDSL lines in service generating revenue for Operators and more than a hundred system vendors who already offer QAM-based VDSL platforms, QAM is accepted as the de-facto line code for VDSL,” said Christian Wolff, Vice President of Infineon’s Communications Business Group and General Manager of the Access Business Unit.

QAM VDSL chipsets and systems, supporting the ITU, ETSI, Chinese, and ANSI band allocation plans, provide very high speed data transmission rates over robust, noise-immune QAM links enabling simultaneous video, data, and voice services over single-pair copper wires. The inherent simplicity of the QAM line code is demon-strated in superior cost and power advantages over competing VDSL line codes, yet with QAM’s sophisticated features and benefits. These advantages are further emphasized with the distance and speed increase available only in QAM VDSL with VDSLPlus technology.

About Metalink

Metalink Ltd. (NASDAQ: MTLK) is a market leader in developing high performance broadband access DSL chipsets used by telecommunications and networking equipment makers, and telecommunications service providers. Metalink’s VDSL, SHDSL and HDSL silicon solutions enable cost-effective, very high-speed delivery of broadband access over ATM, TDM, and Ethernet-IP network infrastructure. Metalink’s advanced DSP, communications, and mixed signal capabilities, along with its leadership in standards bodies worldwide, have established Metalink as a global pioneer in the field of broadband access. Leading OEMs in Asia, North America and Europe have chosen to deploy Metalink’s next generation VDSL, SHDSL, and HDSLx products. Founded in 1992, Metalink, a fabless semiconductor company, is headquartered in Yakum, Israel and has offices in Folsom, CA. Further information is available at http://www.metalinkDSL.com

About Infineon

Infineon Technologies AG, Munich, Germany, offers semiconductor and system solutions for the automotive and industrial sectors, for applications in the wired communications markets, secure mobile solutions as well as memory products. With a global presence, Infineon operates in the US from San Jose, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore and in Japan from Tokyo. In fiscal year 2002 (ending September), the company achieved sales of Euro 5.21 billion with about 30,400 employees worldwide. Infineon is listed on the DAX index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: IFX). Further information is available at http://www.infineon.com

Infineon, Infineon Technologies, and the stylised Infineon Technologies design are registered trademarks and service marks.

VDSLPlus is pending trademark registration.