Hughes Electronics Scientist to Lead Top R&D Team

RICHMOND, Canada - February 8, 2001 - fSONA Communications Corp. has hired laser pioneer David Rockwell to be director of research and development. In this newly created position, Rockwell will be responsible for establishing and leading a strategic R&D program that will extend fSONA's competitive advantage in its targeted business segments.

Rockwell brings to fSONA more than 33 years of experience in laser research and technology management, gained while working at Hughes Electronics and other world-class research organizations. During this time, Rockwell established a successful record of transferring technology from the research laboratory to engineering and production organizations. At the time of his departure, he was senior scientist and process champion for optical communications, Hughes Space & Communications Company. Previously, he was a Principal Research Scientist and Manager of the Advanced Laser Sources department at the Hughes Research Laboratories.

"David's exceptional leadership and expertise in laser communications will be an indispensable addition to fSONA as we prepare for the commercial introduction of our SONAbeam™ product line," said Theresa Carbonneau, president and chief executive officer. "He is well qualified to lead our stellar team of engineers and scientists in their research and development efforts."

Internationally recognized for laser and optics research, Rockwell has a record of more than 75 publications and presentations and 12 issued patents. He is the recipient of several awards, including a Hughes Research Laboratories Group Invention Award for a self-aligning phase-conjugate laser that led to a $15 million sole-source Hughes contract from the U.S. Army.

Rockwell has undertaken third party due diligence in the areas of optical and laser technology for the venture capital community. He has also served as an expert consultant for the Science Applications International Corp. where he assessed the status of Soviet phase-conjugation research as applied to high-power lasers.

Rockwell received a bachelor's degree in engineering physics with highest honors from the University of Illinois and a doctorate in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

About fSONA
fSONA Systems is recognized as the preferred provider of optical wireless solutions for government, enterprise and service provider markets around the globe. Leveraging leading edge advancements in 1550nm optical transmission, the SONAbeam™ family of systems, based on free-space-optics (FSO), use a globally unlicensed, wireless technology to provide speeds up to 2.5 Gbps over distances up to 7km. For more information visit www.fsona.com or www.free-space-optics.org

Further Information
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