Corvis Enhances All-Optical Product Suite to Provide Increased Capacity and Flexibility.

Business Editors

COLUMBIA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 31, 2001

CorWave ON Offers Carriers Unprecedented Network Capacity and

Seamless Evolution to All-Optical Express Layer

Corvis Corporation (NASDAQ:CORV) today announced further capacity and flexibility enhancements to CorWave ON, the telecommunications industry's only commercially available all-optical networking product suite, which enables carriers to expand and develop advanced wavelength services.

The enhanced CorWave ON enables carriers to deploy next-generation all-optical transmission and switching products incrementally in their existing network, providing capacity where it is needed in order to meet their customers' growing bandwidth demands. The CorWave ON offers the industry's highest network capacity, providing up to 2.8 Tb/s transmission capacity in each direction and 16.8 Tb/s switching capacity, a seven-fold increase from Corvis' previous transmission and switching products.

The improved flexibility of the CorWave ON allows established carriers to upgrade their existing transport network to a cost-effective, high capacity architecture with an all-optical express transport layer. Emerging carriers at different stages of their network build-out are now able to construct discrete point-to-point links, which can be evolved in service to provide an all-optical express layer. As a result, carriers will be able to leverage their initial capital investment, while enabling new revenue-generating optical services.

"Corvis permits carriers to have the best of both worlds," said Dr. David Huber, President and CEO of Corvis Corporation. "By providing both increased capacity and seamless migration capabilities, both existing and emerging carriers can take full advantage of our enhanced suite of all-optical networking products to offer new bandwidth-intensive services to their customers."

"This announcement demonstrates Corvis' continued ability to execute on and extend its vision of all-optical networking," said Dana Cooperson, Director of Optical Transport, RHK, Inc. "Long-haul carriers are looking for optical transport platforms that cost-effectively carry local and express traffic and that evolve as their needs evolve."

The enhanced flexibility and scalability of the CorWave ON product suite allows carriers to manage unpredictable network growth requirements by deploying capacity and upgrading their network where and when it is needed. Also, carriers with a regional deployment strategy who wish to migrate to a nationwide network can now evolve their regional networks into an all-optical express network by building out their network to meet the expansion of their business.

The enhanced CorWave ON product suite comprises the following:

-- CorWave Optical Network Gateway (ONG): Provides access to an all-optical
network for new client traffic and provides interoperability with other
networks and network elements. The Optical Network Gateway provides up to 2.8
Tb/s in each direction that can be transmitted up to 3,200 kilometers over
diverse fiber types without electrical regeneration. The Optical Network
Gateway supports and transports 2.5 and 10 Gbps SONET/SDH traffic in both
concatenated and channelized formats. The ONG can be upgraded to an Optical
Add/Drop Multiplexer to enable optical networking.

-- CorWave Optical Amplifier (OA): Employs various amplification technologies
to support high capacity transmission over diverse fiber types. The Optical
Amplifier supports 2.8 Tb/s in each direction and distances of up to 3,200
kilometers without electrical regeneration and can be upgraded to an Optical
Add/Drop Multiplexer, when network access is required to add and drop traffic.

-- CorWave Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (OADM): Enables traffic to enter and
exit the network at a network intersection without requiring an
optical-to-electrical-to-opti cal conversion of traffic passing through the
intersection. The Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer can be upgraded to an Optical
Switch as fiber routes are added at a major point of presence (POPs) in the
network.

-- CorWave Optical Switch (OS): The world's first commercially available
all-optical switch provisions routes and optically switches up to 16.8 Tb/s of
traffic between fibers. The Optical Switch interconnects multiple fibers to
switch traffic between one or more fibers entirely in the optical domain and
allows fiber routes to be added at POPs in the network.

About Corvis

Corvis Corporation is a leading provider of next-generation optical services networks founded by Dr. David Huber, a pioneer in the field of optical communications. By deploying the industry's first all-optical network, Corvis has revolutionized the way communications traffic is moved in the new Internet-driven economy. Corvis products and services deliver all-optical network intelligence and mesh network capabilities providing telecom service providers with end-to-end core networking solutions, which make them more competitive in the market. Corvis' next-generation products enable these carriers to offer their customers a vast array of advanced wavelength services that dramatically lower capital and operational costs, while generating increased revenue. For more information, call Corvis at 443-259-4000 or visit the Corvis web site at www.corvis.com.

Corvis, CorWave and the Corvis logo are trademarks and/or service marks of the Corvis Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Note: This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated as a result of a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the risks and uncertainties discussed under "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.