Toshiba's CSR 5300 Adopted By Japan's Media Exchange Co., Ltd. Company To Provide Core Router for Nationwide Internet Exchange

20 April, 1998


Tokyo--Toshiba Corporation today announced that the company's advanced Internet Protocol (IP) switch, the CSR 5300, has been selected as the core router for the commercial Internet exchange service provided by Media Exchange Co., Ltd. (MEX). Factors supporting selection of CSR 5300 included its high-speed transmission rates, future scalability and its reliable performance in demanding field trials.

Toshiba's CSR 5300 delivers high-speed IP switching and data transmission that both meets today's growing bandwidth demands and addresses the requirements of next-generation Internet and Intranet applications by integrating cell switch router (CSR) technology with an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) switch.

MEX was established in May, 1997 by a consortium of New Common Carriers (NCC)---newly-established local telecommunications companies---and other investors, to provide Internet connection services to customers that include Internet Service Providers (ISPs), the companies providing users with gateways to the Internet. MEX is Japan's first commercial "Internet eXchange (IX) ", and in this capacity it started to construct an ATM-based trunk network to connect local NCCs in December 1997.

Toshiba's CSR 5300 was provisionally adopted for pilot operation of the MEX network. The router's performance to date has now secured its selection as the core router, and confirmed its ability to meet current network requirements and support future demands, including both a growing number of ISPs and the growing scale of their business.

CSR 5300's integration of CSR and ATM technology provides a routing solution that maintains complete interoperability between the CSR technology and ATM-switch based networks. CSR supports high-speed switching by setting up cut-through paths directly through the network for IP traffic, avoiding delays that occur with the hop-by-hop processing typical of conventional routers. The ATM switch provides state-of-the-art IP packet switching. As a result, CSR 5300 provides both a flow-driven method and topology-driven method that deliver flexible network layer switching, and is suited to next-generation Internet and Intranet environments requiring high-performance and scalability.

Toshiba markets its CSR series routers, the CSR 5300 and 3300, through its telecom-related sales channels in Japan. In the U.S. market, Toshiba licenses CSR technology to Ennovate Networks, Inc. (Boxborough, Mass.), which is developing a service provisioning access router that will support CSR.

Media Exchange Co., Ltd.
Tokyo-based Media Exchange Co., Ltd. was established on May 26, 1997 to provide ISPs with high performance, scalable Internet exchange connections. Its main shareholders are Tokyo Telecommunication Network Co., Inc. (TTNet), Osaka Media Port (OMP), Mitsui & Co. Ltd., Mitsubishi Corp. and Network Catalyst. Other investors include Japan's seven new common carriers , Kokusai Denshin Denwa Co., Ltd. (KDD) and Sumitomo Corp.

Ennovate Networks, Inc.
Massachusetts-based Ennovate Networks Inc. is developing products for the Network Service Providers, that will allow the development of new IP services. Ennovate Networks was founded in 1997 and its principal investors are Toshiba Corporation and Mitsui & Co., Ltd.


Information in the press releases, including product prices and specifications, content of services and contact information, is current on the date of the press announcement,but is subject to change without prior notice.