Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ:CIEN), the network specialist, today announced that Lifeline Data Centers, an Indianapolis-based provider of strategic data center outsourcing facilities and services, has deployed the CN 4200® FlexSelect® Advanced Services Platform to provide high-performance, low-latency connectivity over dark fiber between its existing data center in downtown Indianapolis and its new 460,000-square foot state-of-the-art data center facility twelve miles outside of the city.

Serving healthcare, retail, government, biotech and other industries, Lifeline Data Centers provides customers with cost-effective data center space and outsourcing, as well as managed IT services and access to more than 20 service providers. As part of a project to dramatically expand its capacity, Lifeline is transforming the former Eastgate Mall – one of Indianapolis’ first retail shopping centers – into a data center, which currently includes 65,000 square feet of space and will ultimately house 460,000 square feet spread across five buildings on the property.

After reviewing various options for connecting the two sites, Lifeline secured dark fiber and deployed Ciena’s CN 4200 at each data center to meet its connectivity requirements. Key selection criteria included the platform’s flexible support of multiple services, carrier-class reliability and the ability to grow capacity in increments, which enables Lifeline to buy and deploy only the capacity it requires when it needs it without sacrificing system capacity. In the cost-competitive data center market, this is crucial as it directly aligns Lifeline’s transport costs with secured business versus investing in capacity based purely on market speculation or uncertain future demand.

“The ability to offer our clients a network optimized for speed and reliability is critical to both our business and theirs,” said Rich Banta, founder and CTO at Lifeline Data Centers. “Ciena’s CN 4200 provides a carrier-class network foundation that allows us to control costs while delivering advanced connectivity services to our customers that complement our state-of-the-art data center facilities and managed services.”

Lifeline is using the new data center connection to transport customer traffic between sites, backhaul traffic from the new site to connect to service providers in their original data center, and to directly sell its own bandwidth.

“Across nearly all industries – from algorithmic financial trading to software-as-a-service applications or electronic medical records – information, entertainment and applications are being aggregated, stored and delivered from increasingly sophisticated data centers. The success of that model requires a combination of hardware, software, services and network connectivity optimized for performance, reliability and security,” said Steve Alexander, chief technology officer at Ciena. “Lifeline is another example of how data center operators can leverage the flexibility, performance and modular capacity of the CN 4200 to create nimble, service-driven data center connections for cost-effectively transporting any mix of traffic over any distance.”

About Ciena

Ciena specializes in practical network transition. We offer leading network infrastructure solutions, intelligent software and a comprehensive services practice to help our customers use their networks to fundamentally change the way they compete. With a global presence, Ciena leverages its heritage of practical innovation to deliver maximum performance and economic value in communications networks worldwide. We routinely post recent news, financial results and other important announcements and information about Ciena on our website. For more information, visit www.ciena.com.

About Lifeline Data Centers

Lifeline Data Centers, LLC is an Indianapolis-based company that provides computer room facilities for public, private and government clients. Lifeline provides the highest quality hardened facilities with multiple telecommunications providers and flexible options. Clients use Lifeline to protect their primary and backup computer systems, and to avoid the costs of building their own computer room facilities. Lifeline also provides managed services including remote backup, regular maintenance and emergency services. For more information, visit: http://www.lifelinedatacenters.com.

Note to Ciena Investors

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof; and Ciena's actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied, due to risks and uncertainties associated with its business, which include the risk factors disclosed in its Report on Form 10-Q, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 4, 2009. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding Ciena's expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," "will," and "would" or similar words. Ciena assumes no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.