(OFC/NFOEC) ANAHEIM, Calif. — March 7, 2006 —Avanex Corporation (NASDAQ: AVNX), Mitsubishi Electric Corp. and Opnext, Inc., today announced the formation of a Multi-Source Agreement (MSA) to establish compatible sources of 10Gbit/s XFP-E (Extended Size) transceivers for high-performance applications in 10Gbit/s optical transmission systems. The announcement was made at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference & Exposition and the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference 2006 (OFC/NFOEC).

The members will establish internationally compatible sources of 10Gbit/s XFP-E transceivers that are designed to achieve high-performance applications of 10Gbit/s transmission systems with electrical and optical compatibility with XFP standard transceivers. As an extension of standard XFP MSA 4.0 compliant, it provides convenient and flexible optical interfaces for ultra-long-haul DWDM applications as well as back compatibility with SONET/SDH, 10GbE and 10G Fiber Channel XFP transceivers operating from 9.95Gbit/s up to 11.09 Gbit/s. The new XFP-E meets the applicable ITU-T G.691, ITU-T G.709, Telcordia GR-253 and XFP MSA standards. An XFI electrical interface is provided along with a two wire serial I2C interface for digital diagnostics.

This MSA intends to establish the compatible XFP-E Transceivers as defined below:

• Common mechanical dimensions including the LC-receptacle parts
• Common pin assignment and functions
• Common electrical and optical characteristics

The MSA is now finalizing the XFP-E specifications and samples will be available in 2006.

The XFP-E will be a natural extension and backward compatible to XFP technology to:

• Allow to cover non DWDM and DWDM applications 40km and 80km
• Provide a solution for high-end enhanced application including very reach and tunable capability into XFP transceiver standard
• Extend temperature range upgrade to -40, +85 °C

• High degree of possible customization

About AVANEX Corporation
Avanex Corporation is a leading global provider of Intelligent Photonic Solutions(TM) to meet the needs of fiber optic communications networks for greater capacity, longer distance transmissions, improved connectivity, higher speeds and lower costs. These solutions enable or enhance optical wavelength multiplexing, dispersion compensation, switching and routing, transmission, amplification, and include network-managed subsystems. Avanex was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Fremont, Calif. Avanex also maintains facilities in Elmira, N.Y.; Shanghai, China; Nozay, France; San Donato, Italy; and Bangkok, Thailand. To learn more about Avanex, visit our web site at: www.avanex.com.  

About Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
With more than 80 years of experience in providing reliable, high-quality products to both corporate clients and general consumers all over the world, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TSE:6503) is a recognized world leader in the manufacture, marketing and sales of electrical and electronic equipment used in information processing and communications, space development and satellite communications, consumer electronics, industrial technology, energy, transportation and building equipment. The company recorded consolidated group sales of 3,410 billion yen (US$ 31.9 billion*) in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2005. For more information visit http://global.mitsubishielectric.com.  

*At an exchange rate of 107 yen to the US dollar, the rate given by the Tokyo Foreign Exchange Market on March 31, 2005.

About Opnext, Inc.
Opnext, Inc., is a global leader in high-performance optical components, including high power lasers, laser diodes and EA-DFB modules, optical transmitters receivers and transceivers, SFP’s, 300-pin MSA transponders (SerDes transceivers), XENPAK, X2 and XFP modules. Formed out of Hitachi, Opnext brings over 30 years experience to the design, development and manufacture of high-performance components and subsystems that power today's access communications, backbone, metro, information and industrial markets. Opnext provides world-class customer service, and has been recognized with service awards from Cisco and CIENA. For additional information, visit the Opnext web site at www.opnext.com.