Thomson Successfully Completes TR-069 Interoperability Testing With SupportSoft Testing Carried Out in SupportSoft's New Digital 360 Interoperability Lab Confirms Thomson's Residential Gateway Compliance With CPE WAN Management Protocol PARIS, Dec. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Thomson (NYSE: TMS; Euronext Paris: 18453), the leading provider of DSL Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) worldwide and SupportSoft, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPRT), a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM(TM)) software, today announced that they have successfully conducted interoperability testing of the DSL Forum CPE WAN Management protocol. Known as TR-069, this specification ensures that DSL modems can be easily configured, activated and managed from a console in the network, helping service providers to effectively address the costs of deployment and support of their CPE as well as tightly manage broadband service delivery. TR-069 provides the necessary framework for efficient and scalable deployment of new services on top of the DSL broadband infrastructure. Thomson and SupportSoft have validated that Thomson's DSL CPE devices and SupportSoft's netConfiguration(TM) software interoperate in accordance with the DSL Forum TR-069 specification. The DSL Forum is recognized as the leading industry consortium dedicated to developing the full potential of DSL broadband. Its membership includes 200 leading service providers, equipment manufacturers and other interested parties worldwide -- all committed to developing common standards and embracing new applications to meet the needs of the next generation of multi-media services for DSL customers. "Thomson and SupportSoft share key customers in Europe and are working together to meet the needs of DSL service providers. As the world's leading DSL CPE provider, Thomson felt it was a natural fit to work with an innovator in customer service automation solutions for broadband service providers," said Rudy van Duppen, Vice President, DSL, of Thomson Telecom, part of Thomson's Access Platforms & Gateways activity. "We fully support the move towards a standardized remote management interface for DSL modems as it offers new opportunities for the delivery of triple-play premium services as well as drastically reduces a service provider's operating costs." "Robust subscriber growth in the DSL market is forecasted to continue in the years ahead. Facilitating the installation and configuration of new subscribers is a key factor in profitably acquiring new subscribers," said Chris Grejtak, senior vice president of products and marketing. "Our work with Thomson Telecom in supporting DSL Forum specifications is another step forward in that direction and we look forward to continued collaboration with Thomson." About Thomson - Partner to the Media & Entertainment Industries Thomson provides technology, systems, and services to help its Media & Entertainment clients -- content creators, content distributors and users of its technology -- realize their business goals and optimize their performance in a rapidly changing technology environment. The Group intends to become the preferred partner to the Media & Entertainment industries through its Technicolor, Grass Valley, RCA and THOMSON brands. For more information: http://www.thomson.net/. Thomson Telecom belongs to Thomson's Access Platforms and Gateways (AP&G) division. Part of Thomson's Media Systems and Equipment division, AP&G is one of the leading suppliers of high-speed modems, IP set-top boxes, and telephones to telephone companies and ISPs around the globe. It is also a leading supplier of digital entertainment receivers to the world's major satellite, cable and terrestrial broadcasters and is the number one supplier of satellite receivers in the world. Products are marketed under several brands including RCA, THOMSON, and SpeedTouch. About SupportSoft SupportSoft is a leading provider of Real-Time Service Management (RTSM(TM)) software designed to ease enterprise technical support, provide for IT endpoint automation and enable triple play service automation for VoIP, video or broadband delivery by service providers to their customers. Digital service providers benefiting from SupportSoft solutions include Adelphia Communications, BellSouth, Charter Communications, Comcast Communications, Cox Communications, Time Warner, TeliaSonera and UPC. Enterprises that have licensed SupportSoft software for IT requirements include ADP, Bank of America, BT, IBM, Procter & Gamble, Siebel Systems, Sony and Thomson Financial. Managed service providers that utilize the Company's solutions to provide outsourced services to their enterprise customers include Accenture, ACS, CGI, CompuCom, CSC and IBM Global Services. For more information visit http://www.supportsoft.com/. Note: SupportSoft's Digital 360 Interoperability Lab enables CPE vendors to test compliance of CPE equipment with DSL Forum Technical Reports TR-064 and TR-069 using SupportSoft software. More information on the SupportSoft Digital 360 Interoperability Lab and qualifications for testing can be found by visiting http://www.supportsoft.com/testlab. This press release contains forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, statements related to the subscriber growth in the DSL market and the continued collaboration between the companies. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in these forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: continued acceptance of the DSL, the rapid pace of technological change, the impact of competition, the ability of SupportSoft software to operate with future versions of the customer premise equipment, as well as other risks detailed from time to time in its SEC filings. Statements included in this release are based upon information known to SupportSoft as of the date of this release, and SupportSoft assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release. DATASOURCE: SupportSoft, Inc. CONTACT: Jennifer Massaro of SupportSoft, Inc., +1-650-556-8596, or ; or Brenda Clery, Director, Marketing Communications, Access Platforms & Gateways, of Thomson, +33 (0)1 41865481, or Web site: http://www.thomson.net/ Web site: http://www.supportsoft.com/

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