LINTHICUM, Md., August 26 -- CIENA Corp. has announced its intent to acquire privately-held Akara Corp., a developer of SONET/SDH-based extended storage area networking, or storage-over-distance, technology. Akara, a Delaware corporation with development facilities in Ottawa, Ontario, manufactures devices that extend the distance over which data can be transported. Enterprises and telecom carriers use the company's extension platform to bridge data centers over optical networks. Akara has approximately 50 employees. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, Akara will merge with a wholly owned subsidiary of CIENA, and all remaining outstanding shares of Akara common and preferred stock will be exchanged for an aggregate consideration of $45 million consisting of $31 million in cash and $14 million in shares of CIENA common stock. The number of CIENA shares to be issued will be determined based on the average closing price of CIENA common stock on the Nasdaq Stock Market on the ten trading days before closing, expected in the fourth fiscal quarter of this year. The transaction is subject to various conditions. The boards of directors of both CIENA and Akara, and the holders of a majority of Akara's stock, have approved the transaction. For more information, visit: www.ciena.com