US Signal Introduces Quality of Service Enhancement to Prioritize

US Signal Introduces Quality of Service Enhancement to Prioritize VoIP, Other IP Traffic Across its Network

Enhanced SLA, Four Data Priority Levels Delivered By Latest Cisco Technology

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., May 10 /PRNewswire/ -- US Signal today announced the introduction of a new Quality of Service (QoS) product enhancement that gives its IP/Internet managed service customers the ability to prioritize VoIP, video and other critical data applications across the entire US Signal IP network.

Grand Rapids, Mich.-based US Signal said QoS is available to its Internet customers who utilize US Signal to manage connectivity. For customers selecting the QoS product option, US Signal will install and manage a Cisco state-of-the-art Integrated Services Router at a customer's location to classify and route data traffic as required by the customer's applications.

The US Signal QoS enhancement was developed in response to assisting customer deployment of VoIP solutions and the resulting need to prioritize VoIP data packets. The Company noted that customers are increasingly moving to optimize their internal networks to give priority to VoIP data up to the edge of their Internet connection. Available May 1, the QoS enhancement extends that optimization across US Signal's core network. The QoS offering also comes with an enhanced Service Level Agreement (SLA) that sets high-level performance standards, including "five 9s" of network reliability, as well as stringent metrics for latency, packet loss and jitter.

The US Signal network, the largest in the Midwest, includes a total of nearly 3,000 route miles of long-haul fiber connecting first-, second- and third-tier markets in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. It also includes more than 500 miles of fiber optic metro rings around

14 high-growth cities and 75 on-off ramps, comprised of major carrier hotel locations and incumbent telephone company central offices. "We are pleased to be able to bring this advanced QoS enhancement to our growing list of IP customers utilizing or considering VoIP, as well as those looking to leverage additional data stream-critical tools such as video streaming and video conferencing," said US Signal's vice president of sales and marketing, Stephen Oyer. "Our utilization of Cisco's 1841 router allows us to offer four distinct classes of data performance to customers, giving them value-based QoS options today that can also scale with the customer as they grow. US Signal's QoS is also backed by one of the strongest SLA's in the industry, demonstrating our confidence in our performance."

About US Signal

US Signal

) is a full-service fiber optic solutions provider, offering a wide range of telecommunications solutions to wholesale customers and channel partners. The Company has built and developed one of the most comprehensive fiber optic networks in the Midwest. As a full- service solutions provider, US Signal offers unlimited high-speed capacity, dark fiber and collocation services, and also works with customers to design and build new network construction projects.

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