NAPERVILLE, Illinois, April 22 /PRNewswire/ --

- Company is freeing up resources to innovate for customers

Tellabs' first-quarter 2008 revenue totaled US$464 million, up 3% from
US$452 million in the first quarter of 2007.

Tellabs earned US$17 million or 4 cents per share on a GAAP (U.S.
generally accepted accounting principles) basis, compared with US$25 million
or 6 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.

On a non-GAAP basis, Tellabs earned US$32 million or 8 cents per share,
compared with US$34 million or 8 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.
Non-GAAP results exclude a pretax charge of US$22.6 million, which
includes US$8.0 million or 1.3 cents per share in equity-based compensation
expense.

Non-GAAP gross profit margins were 39% in the first quarter of 2008,
compared with 34% in the fourth quarter of 2007. The change stemmed from a
shift in product mix.

"Tellabs performed well in a challenging industry environment. Going
forward, our top priority is to free up resources to innovate for customers,"
said Rob Pullen, Tellabs president and chief executive officer.

Tellabs is discontinuing the Tellabs(R) 8865 optical line terminal, but
continuing development of the Tellabs(R) 1100 GPON (gigabit passive optical
network) multiservice access series. Tellabs will use freed-up resources to
fund growth initiatives.

Second-Quarter 2008 Guidance -- The following statements are
forward-looking statements that are based on current expectations and
involve risks and uncertainties, some of which are set forth below. Tellabs
expects second-quarter revenue to be in the range of US$425 million to US$445
million. Non-GAAP gross margin is expected to be 31%, plus or minus, as a
result of product mix. Non-GAAP operating expense is expected to be flat to
slightly down from the first quarter of 2008. Non-GAAP gross margin excludes
about US$2 million in equity-based compensation expense. Non-GAAP operating
expense excludes about US$6 million in equity-based compensation expense.

Share Repurchase -- Under previously announced share repurchase programs,
Tellabs repurchased 21.5 million shares at a cost of US$142 million during
the first quarter of 2008. Since 2005, Tellabs has repurchased 92.9 million
shares at a cost of US$803 million (about 20% of shares outstanding).

Simultaneous Webcast and Teleconference Replay -- Tellabs hosted an
investor teleconference to discuss its first-quarter 2008 results and provide
its outlook for the second quarter of 2008. A taped replay of the call is
available until midnight Central Daylight Time U.S. on Thursday, April 24, at
+1-706-645-9291. When prompted, enter the Tellabs conference ID number:
42786217. A podcast of the call is available at
http://www.tellabs.com/news/feeds/.

Tellabs advances telecommunications networks to meet the evolving needs
of users. Solutions from Tellabs enable service providers to deliver
high-quality voice, video and data services over wireline and wireless
networks around the world. Tellabs (Nasdaq: TLAB) is part of the NASDAQ-100
Index, NASDAQ Global Select Market, Ocean Tomo 300(TM) Patent Index and the
S&P 500. http://www.tellabs.com

Forward-Looking Statements -- This news release, which includes the
results of operations discussion that follows, contains forward-looking
statements, including but not limited to the guidance information contained
in this release that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may
differ from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors
that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, risks
associated with: the competitive landscape, including pricing and margin
pressures, the response of customers and competitors, industry consolidation,
the introduction of new products, the entrance into new markets, the ability
to secure necessary resources, and the economic changes generally impacting
the telecommunications industry. The company undertakes no obligation to
revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances after today or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated
events. For a more detailed description of the risk factors, please refer to
the company's SEC filings.

Tellabs and Tellabs logo are registered U.S. trademarks of Tellabs
Operations, Inc. in the United States and/or in other countries.

Web site: http://www.tellabs.com