Tollgrade Selected as HFC-based VoIP Testing Solutions Vendor by National Cable Television Cooperative

Tollgrade Selected as HFC-based VoIP Testing Solutions Vendor by National Cable Television Cooperative

PITTSBURGH, June 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tollgrade Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:TLGD), a leading supplier of network service assurance products for the cable and telecom industries, announced today that its CheetahXD(TM) OSS and DOCSIS(R)-based CMD product family have been approved for use by the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC).

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A programming and hardware buying cooperative, NCTC represents more than 1,100 independent cable operators, their 6,500 individual systems and more than 9 million subscribers nationwide. By working together to purchase programming, hardware and services, cooperative members strive to keep their businesses competitive and increase value to the subscribers they serve.

Alan Tschirner, VP of Hardware for NCTC, noted: "Tollgrade provides our members another valuable tool as they move towards becoming full-service telecommunication companies, not just cable TV providers. Reliability in VoIP service is critical, and being able to measure and monitor cable plant performance with Tollgrade's CMD-E product will be beneficial to members that choose Tollgrade as a partner."

"We are pleased to support the independent cable operators across the United States through the NCTC's selection of our testing technology to help further develop their VoIP services," said Tollgrade's President and CEO Mark Peterson. "We look forward to working with the cable cooperative's members in deploying our monitoring and measurement solutions as their business opportunities begin to expand," he added.

When managed by CheetahXD OSS, Tollgrade's Cheetah DOCSIS-based CMD-E IP Test Point and CMD-P Power Supply Transponder enable cable operators to proactively test the network's ability to transport premium data and VoIP services from the headend to the HFC end of line.

"Deployable anywhere within the HFC network, the Cheetah CMD Product Family is the cable industry's only DOCSIS-based transponder that interoperates with the PacketCable(TM) network as an E-MTA, enabling it to execute an advanced suite of VoIP tests from critical points in the network," said Greg Quiggle, EVP of Marketing for Tollgrade. "This unique ability allows cable operators to complete VoIP calls and measure key performance indicators, such as R-factor, jitter, latency and packet loss. These metrics allow an operator to gauge the network's ability to carry and provide VoIP services. Strategically placing the CMD-E in a cable plant allows the operator to proactively monitor for degradation in quality and perform corrective action, helping to keep network integrity high and thereby minimizing customer impact. The ability of this network element to combine data from the HFC/RF, DOCSIS, IP and VoIP domains allows for a true cross-domain test point for the HFC plant," added Quiggle.

Tollgrade network service assurance solutions will be featured at the SCTE CableTec EXPO in Denver, CO on June 21-23, 2006 at Booth # 593.

About National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC)

The National Cable Television Cooperative is a not-for-profit, member- operated purchasing organization. The Co-op's mission is to reduce the operating costs of its member cable companies. The Co-op negotiates and administers master affiliation agreements with cable television programming networks, cable hardware and equipment manufacturers and other service providers on behalf of its member companies. Through joint purchasing and negotiation, the NCTC functions similar to a multi-system operator (MSO), taking advantage of volume discounts offered by programming networks, hardware manufacturers, and other providers. This results in significant cost savings for members on the purchase of these products and services.

About Tollgrade

Tollgrade Communications, Inc. is a leading provider of network service assurance products and services for centralized test systems around the world. Tollgrade designs, engineers, markets and supports centralized test systems, test access and status monitoring products, and next generation network assurance technologies for the broadband marketplace. Tollgrade's customers range from the top RBOCs (Regional Bell Operating Companies) and Cable providers, to numerous independent telecom, cable and broadband providers around the world. Tollgrade's network testing, measurement and monitoring solutions support the infrastructure of cable and telecom companies offering current and emerging triple play services. Tollgrade, headquartered near Pittsburgh in Cheswick, Pa., and its products and customer reach span over 200 million embedded access lines, more than any other test and measurement supplier. For more information, visit Tollgrade's web site at www.tollgrade.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Tollgrade cautions readers that the foregoing release contains "forward looking statements" regarding future events or results within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including statements concerning new customers and the introduction of new product technologies. Tollgrade cautions readers that such "forward looking statements" are, in fact, predictions that are subject to risks and uncertainties and that actual events or results may differ materially from those anticipated events or results expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Tollgrade disclaims any current intention to update these "forward looking statements," and the estimates and assumptions within them, at any time or for any reason. In particular, the following factors, among others could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the "forward looking statements:" (a) possible unforeseen delays in the deployment of these technologies; (b) uncertainty of success in selling products through this sales channel; (c) need for successful introduction, trial implementation and acceptance of product with various new customers; (d) inability to protect Tollgrade's intellectual property from infringement or the possibility that Tollgrade technology infringes upon the intellectual property rights of others, adversely affecting Tollgrade's ability to market and sell such technology; and (e) Tollgrade's dependence upon a limited number of third parties manufacturing our products or specific technology incorporated into our products. Other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those contained in the "forward looking statements" are included in Tollgrade's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") including, but not limited to, Tollgrade's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 and any subsequently filed reports. All documents are also available through the SEC's Electronic Data Gathering Analysis and Retrieval system at www.sec.gov or from Tollgrade's website at www.tollgrade.com.

Cheetah and CheetahXD are trademarks of Tollgrade Communications, Inc.
DOCSIS and PacketCable are trademarks of CableLabs.

All other trademarks used in this document are the property of their respective owners.

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Source: Tollgrade Communications, Inc.

CONTACT: Bob Butter of Tollgrade Communications, Inc., +1-412-820-1347,
or cell, +1-412-736-6186, or bbutter@tollgrade.com

Web site: http://www.tollgrade.com/

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/849775.html

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