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Ciena launches local DWDM product
Reuters Story - September 05, 1997 12:50
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LINTHICUM, Md., Sept 5 (Reuter) - Ciena Corp on Friday
announced a new product that will allow local exchange
telephone carriers to expand the bandwidth of existing
fiberoptic cable by up to 24 times its current capacity.
The new product, MultiWave Firefly, is designed for local
phone operators or regional telecommunications companies.
Firefly will be commercially available by the end of 1997,
Ciena said.
Meanwhile, Ciena said a MultiWave Metro product for
intranet services is in development. MultiWave is expected to
be commercially availabile during the second half of 1998.
The rapid growth of the Internet and other data
applications has fueled increased traffic and demand for
bandwidth in the local loop, creating the need for high
bandwidth connectivity, Ciena said.
Previously, dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM)
products designed for long-distance use were seen as too
expensive to be used for short-distance applications, Ciena
said.
DWDM systems allows more data to be transmitted over a
fiber optic network, easing traffic congestion without
requiring the installation of new fiber.
"We believe DWDM products designed for short-haul
applications will effectively change the economics of
delivering bandwidth," said Patrick Nettles, Ciena's chief
executive officer.
"MultiWave Firefly will alleviate bandwidth constraint for
interoffice applications, bringing the scalability and cost
efficiencies of DWDM to an entirely new base of customers,"
Nettles said.
Shares of Ciena gained 1-3/8 to 50-5/8 in afternoon
trading. Ciena launched its initial public offering on February
7.
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