LINTHICUM, Md. -- CIENA® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN), a global provider of innovative network solutions, today announced it has added Ethernet multiplexing (EMUX) capabilities to its ONLINE Edge(tm) coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM) platform. Available immediately, the new EMUX card enables service providers to optimize network utilization on lower-bandwidth data services at the network edge.

In today's network environment, service providers typically require multiple fibers or expensive add/drop multiplexers (ADMs) to transport low-bandwidth 10/100 Mbps Ethernet services for enterprise customers. CIENA's EMUX cards enable the ONLINE Edge to multiplex up to eight 10/100 Ethernet signals and a Gigabit Ethernet or Fibre Channel signal into one OC-48/STM-16 wavelength, making it possible for service providers to offer a variety of emerging data services on their current infrastructure without wasting valuable bandwidth. CIENA's EMUX solution can provide up to 80 percent capital savings over legacy approaches in addition to significant operational savings.

With this enhancement, CIENA continues to take real steps in making data services more efficient at the network edge, which benefits both service providers and their customers. By replacing multiple fibers and ADMs with an integrated Ethernet MUX, CIENA is enabling carriers to take cost out of delivering enterprise data services while providing carrier-class reliability for business-critical applications.

The integrated EMUX is the latest element of CIENA's LightWorks Services strategy to enable service providers to use their existing infrastructure to make current services more profitable and to capitalize on new opportunities in enterprise data services without overlay data networks.

CIENA's EMUX card enables service providers to offer carrier-class Ethernet Private Line, Ethernet Virtual Private Line and Fibre Channel services on a single network. It also overcomes the inherent distance limitations of Fibre Channel with a distance extension technology that enables service providers to support Fibre Channel services up to hundreds of kilometers without loss in throughput.

From an operational cost-savings perspective, the native performance monitoring metrics embedded in the EMUX card enables guaranteed service level agreements (SLAs) and minimizes the amount of time and effort needed to troubleshoot service outages, providing distinct operational savings to carriers.

The EMUX family of cards supports both electrical and optical interfaces on the client side. In addition, because the cards are interoperable, they enable service providers to pick up electrical 10/100 interfaces at the client interface and drop them off as optical 10/100 interfaces. This feature gives carriers the ability to service a variety of customer configurations cost effectively.

"As we continue to drive our solutions further toward the edge of the network, CIENA remains committed to helping service providers improve operating margins for their data services," said Francois Locoh-Donou, vice president of marketing at CIENA. "The integration of the Ethernet MUX into ONLINE Edge will enable carriers to offer multiple services on a single network more efficiently, and more profitably."

Ciena Corp.