Plaintree Systems Signs VAR Partnership with Red5 in Mexico.

Ottawa, Canada - May 16, 2001: (PRN):- Plaintree Systems Inc. (Plaintree), a developer and manufacturer of optical wireless products and network switches, today announced a VAR (Value Added Reseller) agreement for Mexico with Red5, a Latin American telecommunications equipment supplier. "Plaintree's WaveBridge links are an excellent solution to Mexico's last-mile connectivity problems," said Sergio Murillo, President of Red5 Inc. "We already have three WaveBridge 500 systems in place for field evaluation and we are very pleased with how well they are working and also how little time it took to install them."

"Our customers will be able to reduce their costs in most cases," he continued, "and more importantly, have connectivity where none was available before at any price. Plaintree's sales, marketing, and tech support are first rate and its pricing is extremely competitive."

Plaintree develops and manufactures optical wireless links using Class 1, eye-safe LED (light-emitting diodes) technology. These links, which are part of Plaintree's new WaveBridge series, provide high-speed network connections, bypassing the need for expensive cable installation and frequency licensing for Internet Service Providers, cellular operators, and campus networks.

"Red5's management's background is in satellite and telecommunications so they fully understand the benefits of the WaveBridge links, " said David Watson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Plaintree, "We are very happy about our agreement with Red5 which enables us to enter the substantial market in Mexico that we are confident exists for our products."

Regarding the potential of the Mexican market, Red5's Mr. Murillo, agrees, saying, "We already have numerous inquiries regarding Plaintree's products and we have submitted information to an RFP (request for proposal) received from one of the dominant Telco Carriers. We have every reason to believe we will place hundreds of WaveBridge units in service in the next year."

About Red5 Inc.
Red5 Inc., which has its corporate headquarters in San Diego, California, is focused on serving the Mexican and other burgeoning Latin American telecommunications markets. The President of Red5, Sergio Murillo, is a key player in the Cellular communications and Satellite Television industry in Mexico as well as a published author of numerous books and articles. "Red" is the Spanish word for network and every Latin American countries' telephone code begins with "5". Red5's Mexican operations are based in Mexico City under the name, Red52. The Vice President of Operations at Red52 is Ing. Gustavo Loman, who is considered a pioneer in the Mexican Satellite Television industry. The Red5 websites are www.red5.usa.com (english site) or www.red52.net.mx (spanish).

About Plaintree Systems
Founded in 1988, Plaintree Systems Inc. is a leading manufacturer of optical wireless links, network switches, and LAN and telecommunications products. Using infrared (LED) technology, Plaintree's high-quality products offer high-speed data and voice transmission without any licensing requirements. These links are easy to install. Once installed the links are safe, secure, reliable, and robust, so avoid costly network downtime. Unlike other network solutions, these links can be densely co-located to provide big bandwidth connectivity without the frequency problems associated with crowded airwaves. The technology is a cost-efficient alternative to the expense of laying cable to connect the 'last mile'. Internet service providers and cellular operators are some of the potential markets for Plaintree's systems. Another high-potential market is the avionics industry, - where radio frequencies are tightly regulated.

Plaintree Systems headquartered in the Ottawa region, operates manufacturing facilities for switches and wireless products in Arnprior, Ontario. Plaintree is publicly traded in Canada on the Toronto Stock Exchange and in the U.S. on the OTC:Bulletin Board, with 86,059,869 shares outstanding. Plaintree maintains a world-wide web site at http://www.plaintree.com.

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