FREMONT, CA--(Marketwire - Mar 28, 2012) - Network Equipment Technologies, Inc. ("NET") (NASDAQ: [ NWK ]) announced today a strategic initiative with BT to significantly simplify the deployment and installation of Microsoft Lync 2010, greatly reducing the time it takes for service providers and large enterprises to deploy advanced unified communications (UC) solutions. Utilizing NET's UX Series platform, BT will provide best-of-breed managed and professional solutions that add value to on-premise enterprise application systems.

"Businesses are seeking ways to reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve customer service. Being able to communicate and collaborate with anyone at any time, whether you are using phone, e-mail, application sharing, messaging or conferencing is key to achieving these goals," said Matthew Krueger, Vice President Business Development at NET. "The combined BT and NET solution offers customers an innovative option to the challenge of deploying UC and cloud-based managed services."

NET's Unified Exchange (UX) Series high performance mediation platform is based on a modular 1U platform that has been purpose-built for unified communications and enterprise session border controller applications. As a session mediation platform, UX Series products reduce both capital and operational expenses by eliminating the need to purchase separate infrastructure components such as a PSTN gateway, session border controller, and application server. The UX Series is qualified as an enterprise Survivable Branch Appliance for Microsoft® Lync™ 2010.

BT's Managed Lync solution provides the benefits of convergence -- where previously separate technologies come together on one platform -- without the upheaval or cost of a completely new infrastructure. The initiative between NET and BT will augment BT's existing global Managed Lync services offering -- part of the BT One portfolio. Specifically, by combining voice and data communications on one platform, customers can achieve improved efficiencies for their staff at a reduced cost for call and data transmission and management.

"This initiative was designed to address the unique customer requirements for a Lync-based 'cloud' managed service," said Randy Schrock, Vice President, Corporate Alliances, BT Global Services. "We're excited to be able to introduce NET's UX Series products as part of our Microsoft Lync solution strategy in order to help our customers benefit from improved unified communications productivity at substantially lower costs. This initiative with NET expands both our professional and managed service solutions we offer to U.S. domestic customers and complements our global strategic approach by continuing to drive innovation and business value into our core network services."

BT established operations in North America more than 20 years ago and now employs around 4,000 people in 35 offices with headquarters in Irving, TX.

About BT
BT is one of the world's leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving customers in more than 170 countries. Its principal activities include the provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and international telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at work and on the move; broadband and internet products and services and converged fixed/mobile products and services. BT consists principally of four lines of business: BT Global Services, BT Retail, BT Wholesale and Openreach. In the year ended 31 March 2011, BT Group's revenue was £20,076m with profit before taxation of £1,717m.

British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on stock exchanges in London and New York.

For more information, visit [ www.btplc.com ]

About Network Equipment Technologies, Inc.
Network Equipment Technologies, Inc. (NET) delivers high performance networking equipment optimized for real-time communications. For more than a quarter of a century, NET has delivered solutions for multi-service networks requiring high degrees of versatility, security and performance. Today, the company is focused on providing secure real-time communications for unified communications (UC), SIP trunking, enterprise mobility, and IP-based multi-service networking. NET is headquartered in Fremont, CA and has 14 offices worldwide including the U.S., the U.K., France, the Middle East, China, Japan, Australia, and Latin America. The company sells its solutions to enterprise and government customers through a direct sales force and an international network of resellers and distributors.

All product and company names herein are trademarks of their respective owners.