For Immediate Release
ATIS 1200 G Street, NW Suite 500 Washington, DC 20005	IPDR Organization 13 Mizzenmast Road Nantucket, MA 02554
Contact: Trish Gessner Phone: 202-434-8851 E-mail: tgessner@atis.org www.atis.org	Contact : Marianne Jenkinson Phone: 908-735-0956 E-mail: mjenkinson@ipdr.org www.ipdr.org

ATIS and IPDR.org to Coordinate Efforts for Data Interchange Standards

October 12, 2004, Washington, D.C. – The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions ( ATIS) announced today that the Internet Protocol Detail Record Organization (IPDR.org) will contribute to the emergent service-neutral e-business framework for back office telecommunications processes. The new Memorandum of Understanding with IPDR.org will extend the ATIS framework to cover essential functions of billing and settlement.

The two organizations will work together to define standardized transport protocols, develop a generic telecommunications data dictionary and create and transition standards to a uniform data element XML schema. The joint work initially will address the demands of accounting, billing, and settling for Voice Over IP (VoIP) traffic.

The agreement, approved by the IPDR.org board, endorses the ATIS Data Interchange Work Plan and formalizes the coordination of IPDR.org’s expertise in the creation of standardized end-to-end billing and provisioning mechanisms called for in the work plan.

“The shift from legacy systems with a myriad of interfaces to a globally defined and interoperable network will be critical for the broad deployment of next-generation services,” said Susan M. Miller, president and CEO of ATIS. “IPDR.org has developed standards that address some of the biggest hurdles. Working together and with IPDR.org and other SDOs, ATIS is leading the effort to create a framework for the industry that will reduce costs and inefficiencies resulting from multiple protocols and allow for real-time ordering, billing and other back-office business procedures.”

“Network accounting standardization is essential for profitable service roll-outs in the telecommunications industry,” commented Aron Heintz, President of IPDR.org. “By working within ATIS’s Data Interchange Work Plan, the IPDR specifications will have a much wider reach in the telecommunications market for VoIP and other next generation products.”

The Data Interchange Work Plan emerged in 2003 when the ATIS Board of Directors identified business-to-business data interchange as one of the most pressing industry priorities. As a result, a working group reviewed the existing situation, desired outcomes and work already in progress within ATIS and at other standards development organizations (SDOs). The recommendations outlined a plan to achieve a service neutral e-business framework, now under development.

About ATIS

ATIS is a technical planning and standards development organization that is committed to rapidly developing and promoting technical and operations standards for the communications and related information technologies industry worldwide using a pragmatic, flexible and open approach. Participants from more than 350 communications companies are active in ATIS’ 20 industry committees, and its Incubator Solutions Program. www.atis.org

About IPDR.org

IPDR.org developed the Internet Protocol Detail Record “IPDR” interface used by IP network and service providers to capture network data usage information. IPDR.org is an open consortium of leading service providers, software and equipment vendors, system integrators, and billing and mediation vendors. All are collaborating to facilitate service measurement and exchange for next-generation services by implementing de-facto standards. www.ipdr.org

- 30 -