Information (including product prices, product specifications, details of services, launch dates, inquiry information, and URLs) contained in this news release is current as of the date of the press release but is subject to change without notice. Please note that details may differ from those effective on the search date.

Hitachi Cable's all-in-one IP-PBX *1 ''AquaVocal'' has established support for the ''FUSION IP-Phone'' IP subscriber phone service provided by Fusion Communications Corporation (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Tadahisa Sumida).

With prices decreasing and the sophistication of data communications services increasing in recent years, there has been a rapid proliferation of IP phones, which allow users to make phone calls through the use of an Internet technology called VoIP (Voice over IP). In addition to a reduction in communications costs, the use of IP phones enables a reduction in the cost of wiring required by personnel transfers or office layout changes. However, most of the existing IP-PBX products are intended for larger offices of 500 to 1,000-plus users, which poses a challenge to small- to medium-sized offices in terms of the initial costs and depreciation expenses.In June 2004, Hitachi Cable launched the sale of AquaVocal, designed for small- to medium-sized offices or branch offices/sales offices of large companies of up to 200 users. AquaVocal is an all-in-one IP-PBX that houses various functions needed for use of IP phones in offices, including gateway functions *2 such as an IP carrier gateway, a PSTN gateway, a gateway for connecting analog internal phones, PPPoE functions *3, and survival functions that make it possible to make/receive calls in the public network through analog phones in the event of a power failure. AquaVocal allows small- to medium-sized offices to adopt IP telephony while cutting equipment costs.

By combining AquaVocal's IP carrier gateway function and Fusion Communications' IP subscriber phone service, it has become possible for small- to medium-sized offices to efficiently use IP telephony for both internal and external lines and thereby gain the various benefits associated with the use of IP phones. Since subscribers to the service can make calls to one another for free, companies can reduce inter-office communications costs (both headquarters-to-branch and branch-to-branch costs) through the companywide adoption of AquaVocal and FUSION IP-Phone. Moreover, by assigning a ''050'' phone number to each employee (FUSION IP-Phone ''050 Personal Number Plan''), they can eliminate the need to change telephone numbers for personnel transfers or office relocations, thereby lightening the workload for phone number management.

AquaVocal is available mainly through our sales partners. Through further cooperation with IP phone service providers, we are aiming to increase our market share for IP-PBXs for small- to medium-sized offices.

*1	PBX is short for private branch exchange. An IP-PBX is a PBX for IP phones.
*2	A gateway is a protocol converter used to interconnect communications service providers, IP phone networks, general subscriber phone networks or internal phone networks. Different gateways are used for different types of connection. An IP carrier gateway is used to connect an internal phone network and a communications service provider's IP phone network; a PSTN (public switched telephone networks) gateway is used to connect an internal phone network and a communications service provider's analog public phone network.
*3	PPPoE is short for Point to Point Protocol over Ethernet, a method for using PPP over an Ethernet. PPP is a protocol used to connect computers to the Internet over a dial-up line.

General specifications of AquaVocal main models

AquaVocal 2004FXSO AquaVocal 2112FXSO AquaVocal 3000 All-in-one 4-line model (IP-PBX with PSTN gateway) All-in-one 12-line model (IP-PBX with PSTN gateway) IP-PBX only Port configuration 10/100BASE-TX 2 2 2 PSTN/FXS 4 12 - PSTN/FXO (pass-through port for use in the event of an internal power failure) 4 (1) 12 (3) - Power supply Input power 100 VAC (85 to 132 V), 47 to 440 Hz Switch Rocker switch with operation error prevention guide (located on the front panel) Operating environment Requirements Temperature 0 to 40 degrees Humidity 20 to 85 %RH (non-condensing) Installation Installation (mounting) In a horizontal position   Stacking Stackable when used on a rack/desktop Storage Temperature -20 to 60 degrees   Humidity 20 to 85 %RH (non-condensing) Standards Regulations on noise emissions VCCI-Class A Certifications on telecommunications equipment Certified by JATE Functions Network line LAN line 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX (compliant with IEEE802.3) Number of channels 2 (LANO, LAN1) External connector RJ-45 (shielded, RTP) x 2 (duplex type x 1) Serial interface for maintenance Interface RS-232 level, full-duplex, asynchronous serial interface External connector RJ-45 x 1