For Immediate Release
1200 G Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20005 202/628-6380 202/393-5453 (fax)	Contact: John Bernhards Director of Public Relations Phone: 202/434-8850 E-mail: jbernhards@atis.org

ATIS' Incubator Program Completes Testing for TTY Compatibility into Wireless Handsets

November 7, 2001, Washington, D.C. - The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) announced today that the TTY Technical Standards Implementation (TTSI) Incubator Program successfully completed field testing designed to support TTY signaling on Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) wireless devices and networks.

Leading wireless manufacturers and network service providers established the TTSI Incubator Program, sponsored by ATIS, in order to meet the FCC-established mandate to bring TTY compatibility into wireless handsets for use by the deaf and hard of hearing by June 30, 2002.

A scoring program created by faculty of Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., was utilized to determine the overall success of the field testing effort. The scoring program evaluated overall character error rate during the field testing activity and verified an acceptable error rate of less than one percent.

"With a less than one percent error rate, the field testing clearly showed that it is possible to successfully complete TTY signaling via TDMA," said Ed Hall, vice president for Technology Development at ATIS. "The TTSI Incubator Program is allowing carriers and manufacturers to successfully work together and meet the FCC mandate."

During the testing, TTY devices were connected to wireless devices utilizing a 2.5mm jack built in accordance with specifications supplied by the TTY Forum. Technical standards supporting the jack specifications were developed by the ATIS-sponsored Committee T1 and the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) Committee TR45.

Participants in the TTSI Incubator Program include Ericsson, AT&T, Cingular, Nokia, Intrado, Lucent Technologies, Kyocerak, Motorola, Panasonic, Samsung, Siemms, Sprint, Verizon and VoiceStream. They will continue their work to ensure compatibility between different handsets, and to ensure successful signaling to and from wireless and landline networks, as well as to 9-1-1 emergency services.

About ATIS

The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) is a member company organization that defines standards and operating procedures for the telecommunications industry. Nearly 1,500 experts from 400 telecommunications companies participate in ATIS committees, whose work focus includes network interconnection standards, number portability, improved data transmission, wireless communications, Internet telephony, toll-free access, and order and billing issues. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) frequently refers operations issues to ATIS committees for recommended solutions. Members of ATIS and committee participants include, but are not limited to, telecommunications service providers, manufacturers, software developers, resellers, enhanced service providers, and providers of operations support. More information is available at www.atis.org.

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