5-year contract renewal supports BT’s new business and growth ambitions for direct optical services

Multinational telecommunications services company BT has agreed to a five-year contract renewal with Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) to deploy its 6500 Converged Packet Optical Platform. The deployment will enable BT to grow its optical services business, building capacity via 100G and nx100G high capacity wavelengths that offer reliable, high speed connectivity services. The UK-wide deployment, which commenced in summer 2017, is supporting BT in its efforts to further upgrade network capacity.

Key Facts:

  • The programmable and scalable benefits of Ciena’s 6500 platform will continue to underpin BT’s expansion plans for optical services, efficiently connecting high-capacity wavelengths quickly and cost effectively on a national scale, whilst playing a key role in uplifting capacity in the overall network.
  • The next-generation network being rolled out by BT and Ciena is designed to support the introduction of new technologies.
    • In addition to offering reliable, high-speed connectivity services, the operational flexibility of the network allows BT to upgrade to higher capacity services and connectivity speeds. With Ciena’s 6500 offering, BT is in an even stronger position to efficiently manage traffic growth.

Executive Comments:

  • “We are delighted about the extension to our strategic alliance with BT and look forward to supporting the business with a flexible, programmable and scalable solution that drives growth and incremental revenue for the business. With Ciena’s industry-leading 6500 platform, BT is futureproofing its networks and continuing to offer its UK customers fast and reliable solutions.”-        Keri Gilder, Vice President & General Manager, EMEA, Ciena
  • “With the growth in high bandwidth services, it’s more important than ever that we continue to innovate and provide flexible network solutions to our customers. We’ve built a great relationship with Ciena over the past five years and we’re pleased to continue working with them.”-          Neil J. McRae, Chief Architect, BT

About BTBT’s purpose is to use the power of communications to make a better world. It is one of the world’s leading providers of communications services and solutions, serving customers in 180 countries. Its principal activities include the provision of networked IT services globally; local, national and international telecommunications services to its customers for use at home, at work and on the move; broadband, TV and internet products and services; and converged fixed-mobile products and services.  BT consists of six customer-facing lines of business: Consumer, EE, Business and Public Sector, Global Services, Wholesale and Ventures, and Openreach.

For the year ended 31 March 2017, BT Group’s reported revenue was £24,062m with reported profit before taxation of £2,354m.

British Telecommunications plc (BT) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BT Group plc and encompasses virtually all businesses and assets of the BT Group. BT Group plc is listed on stock exchanges in London and New York.

For more information, visit www.btplc.com.

About Ciena
Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) is a network strategy and technology company. We translate best-in-class technology into value through a high-touch, consultative business model – with a relentless drive to create exceptional experiences measured by outcomes. For updates on Ciena, follow us on Twitter @Ciena, LinkedIn, the Ciena Insights blog, or visit www.ciena.com.

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