PETALUMA, Calif. and LOWELL, Mass. -- Mahi Networks, a leading supplier of multi-service metro transport and switching solutions, and Mintera Corporation, the technology leader enabling migration to 40 Gigabit per second (Gbps) optical transport, today announced that they have completed verification of the Mahi Vx7 Multi-service Core Transport System (MCTS) to support a capacity of 1.28 Tb/s. This is an industry first for the metro DWDM Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (ROADM) market segment. The companies are also announcing an alliance, integrating Mintera's 40 Gbps transponder technology into the Mahi Vx7.

   With the successful joint testing completed, the Vx7 can now support up to thirty-two 40 Gbps wavelengths on its installed base of Vx7 nodes and any Vx7 nodes shipped going forward. No common equipment or line optics upgrades are required. This milestone is a testament to the photonic layer technology innovations within Mahi's Versicolor(TM) wavelength selectable switch, a patented technology that exceeds the specifications of merchant photonic alternatives such as wavelength blockers and Integrated Photonic Lightwave Circuits (IPLCs), and also demonstrates the versatility and performance of Mintera's transport system.

   Service providers derive the following benefits from this 40 Gbps transpondermilestone:

  

   Dr. Terry Unter, Mintera President and Chief Executive Officer commented, "Mintera's leading edge 40 Gbps transponder technology and Mahi's Versicolor wavelength selectable switch are setting new benchmarks for DWDM capacity and performance in the metro-regional market. These capabilities are essential to support rapidly growing bandwidth demands and new requirements for 40 Gbps services."

   "The ability to scale to 40G line rates in-service without upgrading system common equipment will be a big selling point with carriers looking to protect network investments and reduce total cost of ownership," said Ron Kline, Program Director Optical Networks for RHK Inc, and author of several critical ROADM business and technology reports. "Bandwidth requirements in the metro are about to explode as telco's and MSOs rush to build out optical networks in support of triple-play services. In North America alone, multiple metro ROADM RFPs are expected to complete within the next 12 months making the technology one of the fastest growing transport segments."

   Bill Gartner, Mahi's vice-president and general manager of the company's Transport Systems Group stated, "The strategic forward-thinking decisions of our product architects in the design of the Vx7 are now paying big dividends. Our modular, pay-as-you-grow architecture and one-time optical engineering network design philosophy enable service providers to mix and match 2.5, 10 and 40 Gbps transponders over the product life cycle. We are pleased to be working with Mintera to bring about this highest level of product innovation for the benefit of our growing customer base."

Mahi Networks Inc.

Mintera Corp.