StarBurst MFTP brings reliable IP multicasting toGilat's SkySurfer VSAT satellite networks.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 6, 1997--Networld + Interop Booth # 7378 & #8629--

StarBurst's multicast file transfer technology helps

SkySurfer distribute software updates

StarBurst Communications Corp.

announced today that Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. (NASDAQ:GILTF), one of the world's fastest growing very small aperture terminal (VSAT) satellite companies, has embedded StarBurst Communications' IP multicast technology into its new SkySurfer(TM) VSAT satellite network to help reliably distribute SkySurfer system software updates to remote sites and servers.

SkySurfer is a PC-based VSAT satellite receiver system that delivers high-quality live video, voice and data to remote sites for a fraction of the cost of traditional T1 links. Israel-based Gilat provides satellite communication services for numerous worldwide enterprises, such as Rite Aid, the largest pharmacy chain in the US. Rite Aid will soon use SkySurfer to deliver media-rich information to its 4,000 drug stores, located in 31 states. Gilat has built StarBurst MFTP into the SkySurfer network infrastructure in order to take advantage of the reliability and scaleability of IP multicasting.

"StarBurst's innovative MFTP technology helps us efficiently and reliably distribute business-critical software updates to our far-flung remote sites," said Gilat Satellite Networks Chairman and CEO Yoel Gat. "By embedding StarBurst MFTP into our SkySurfer product's infrastructure, we have also made it easier for private network managers to adopt this technology."

StarBurst MFTP is a 100 percent reliable, true server-push technology that enables a server to send a single stream of traffic to any number of clients by replicating information in the network. MFTP reduces server and network congestion caused by point-to-point transfers, while its inherent speed and efficiency makes it ideal for distributing large files.

"Satellite communications and multicasting are complementary technologies," said StarBurst President and CEO Harland LaVigne. "Uniting Gilat's high-speed, cost-effective satellite services with scaleable StarBurst MFTP gives Gilat a reliable way to distribute business-critical information. We are pleased to support Gilat's exciting new SkySurfer technology."

About Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd.