Avanex terminates CEO as finance chief also resigns

Avanex also announced the appointment of Dr. Giovanni Barbarossa as Interim Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Barbarossa has worked at Avanex since February 2000 and has served as Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer since May 2002. Previously he ran the Active Component Business Unit. Dr. Barbarossa joined Avanex prior to its initial public offering and has been a member of the executive team for over six years. Through his tenure at Avanex, which is the longest of any other officer at the Company, Dr. Barbarossa has established long-standing relationships with customers and employees.

The Board has begun a CEO and CFO search, and a subcommittee of the Board has been established to review potential candidates. Mr. Paul Smith, a current member of the Board, has also been appointed as Non-Executive Chairman of the Board.

"I would like to thank Jo, on behalf of our Board of Directors, for his contributions in taking the Company through a difficult transition period over the last several years. We look forward to continuing the solid execution of the Company's strategy," said Mr. Smith.

The departure of Dr. Major and Ms. Sanchez is not related to the Company's operational performance or financial condition. The Company is reconfirming its fiscal fourth quarter revenue guidance of between $50.0 million and $53.0 million. In addition, the Company anticipates positive cash flow for its fiscal fourth quarter.

Mr. Smith has served on Avanex's Board since November 2007. He is currently President and CEO of PacketMotion, Inc., a network security company. Prior to joining PacketMotion, Mr. Smith was Chairman and CEO of Tasman Networks, Inc., which was acquired by Nortel Networks Corporation. Prior to Tasman, Mr. Smith was Vice President and General Manager of the Telecom Division of New Focus, Inc., which was subsequently acquired by Bookham, Inc., and Senior Vice President of Marketing and Sales for Asante Technologies, Inc.