CIENA TO WEBCAST ANNUAL SHAREHOLDER MEETING

Linthicum, MD — 03/05/2004

Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN), a leading global provider of innovative network solutions, will host a live webcast of its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday, March 10, 2004, beginning at 3:00 PM Eastern.

The webcast will be listen-only and will be accessible and archived for replay through Wednesday,
March 17, 2004 at http://www.ciena.com/investors.


About Ciena

Ciena specializes in network transition. We provide the flexible platforms, intelligent software and professional services to build converged networks for enhanced services and applications. With a growing global presence, Ciena leverages its heritage of practical innovation to deliver maximum performance and economic value in communications networks worldwide. For more information, visit www.ciena.com.
Press Contacts:
Nicole Anderson
Ciena Corporation
(877) 857 -7377
pr@ciena.com
Investor Contacts:
Marie Downing
Ciena Corporation
(888) 243-6223
ir@ciena.com