EASSy Submarine Cable Network Upgraded with Ciena GeoMesh Extreme

Twofold capacity increase supports East Africa’s digital transformation

EASSy, the 10,000-kilometer submarine cable system traversing Africa’s east and south coasts, is leveraging Ciena's (NYSE: CIEN) GeoMesh Extreme, powered by WaveLogic 5 Extreme coherent optical technology, to increase capacity and performance in sub-Saharan Africa. This upgrade will help EASSy satisfy surging digital demands regionally, as well as cost-effectively improve connectivity to Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

Key Facts:

• With this deployment, EASSy is doubling network capacity from 18Tb/s to 36Tb/s across the system to maintain pace with voracious and ongoing bandwidth growth.
• By using Ciena’s latest coherent technology, EASSy is adding intelligence and efficiency to its cable system, maximizing fiber capacity and substantially reducing the transported cost per bit.
• The network is managed by Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) domain controller. By adopting a software-driven, automated approach, EASSy gains maximum operational proficiency and service agility while reducing OPEX.
• EASSy is also utilizing Ciena Services to implement the hardware upgrade, including migration of legacy traffic, as well as to manage and support its network operations center (NOC) in South Africa.

Executive Comments:

• “There’s a great need for affordable and reliable international connectivity in East Africa. We worked with Ciena to make our submarine cable network simpler and higher speed, allowing us to scale to unprecedented capacities at a lower overall cost. This places EASSy in a better position to expedite the closing of the Digital Divide for Africans who are increasingly dependent on cloud-based services.”

- Jacques Van Der Walt, Procurement Group Chair at Telkom South Africa

• “EASSy’s on a mission to provide world-class international connectivity that helps close the Digital Divide in Africa. Our proven deployment capabilities in Africa helped EASSy modernize its network using GeoMesh Extreme, providing on-time capacity that’s critical to keeping pace with ongoing international traffic growth in Africa.”

- Ian Clarke, Vice President of Global Submarine Solutions at Ciena

About EASSy

The Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) is owned and operated by a consortium of African and international telecommunications operators and service providers. EASSy links South Africa with Djibouti via landing points in Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comoros, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia and Sudan. For additional information: www.eassy.org.

About Ciena

Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) is a networking systems, services and software company. We provide solutions that help our customers create the Adaptive Network™ in response to the constantly changing demands of their end-users. By delivering best-in-class networking technology through high-touch consultative relationships, we build the world’s most agile networks with automation, openness and scale. For updates on Ciena, follow us on Twitter @Ciena, LinkedIn, the Ciena Insights blog, or visit www.ciena.com.

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