Procter & Gamble Joins Internet Home Alliance Board of Directors; Other New Members are Taubman Centers, Spitfire Controls and Direct Energy

Business Wire, July 28, 2004

MONTEREY, Calif. -- Internet Home Alliance, a cross-industry network of leading companies advancing the home technology market, announced today the addition of several new members: Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG), which manufactures and markets consumer products in various countries throughout the world; Taubman Centers Inc. (NYSE:TCO), a real estate investment trust that owns and/or manages 31 urban and suburban regional and super regional shopping centers in 13 states; Spitfire Controls, an appliance industry technology solutions provider; and Direct Energy, one of the largest multi-state providers of deregulated retail energy services in North America.

Procter & Gamble, which has joined the Alliance as a Principal member, has been named to the board of directors.

These new members join a stellar roster of firms -- including Cisco Systems Inc., General Motors, Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM, Invensys, Microsoft, Panasonic (Matsushita Electric Corporation of America), SBC Communications, Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Whirlpool Corporation -- that are working together within the Alliance to accelerate adoption of technologies that require a broadband or persistent Internet connection.

"At P&G, we are -- and have always been -- interested in understanding consumers and how our products can help make life better for them. Because our products are typically used in the home, as the digital home becomes a reality, we want to comprehend fully how those changes will affect consumer purchase and use patterns," said Orly Cocco, Future Home Lab Director, Procter & Gamble. "We joined Internet Home Alliance because it is the only organization today that is focused fully on bringing disparate companies together to search for answers to tough questions in this space and to accelerate the development of the home technology market."

"We are delighted to welcome these great and diverse companies into the Alliance," said Kristine Stewart, president, Internet Home Alliance, and director of market development, Worldwide Commercial Marketing, Cisco. "We are particularly pleased to have Procter & Gamble joining at the board level. Their participation and perspectives will greatly enhance the networking and collaboration opportunities that exist within the Alliance and provide our members with new and valuable insights into the connected home market."

In addition to the four new members, Cushcraft, the global leader in the design, development and manufacture of enhanced antenna solutions, has upgraded its membership status from Associate to Contributor.

About Procter & Gamble

Two billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the largest and strongest portfolios of trusted, quality brands, including Actonel(R), Asacol(R), Macrobid(R), Prilosec OTC(TM), Pampers(R), Tide(R), Ariel(R), Always(R), Whisper(R), Pantene(R), Bounty(R), Iams(R), Crest(R) and Olay(R). The P&G community consists of nearly 98,000 employees working in almost 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About Taubman Centers Inc.

Taubman Centers, a real estate investment trust, currently owns and/or manages 31 urban and suburban regional and super regional shopping centers in 13 states. Northlake Mall (Charlotte, N.C.) is under construction and will open Sept. 15, 2005. Taubman Centers is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

About Spitfire Controls

The products of Spitfire Controls are known in the appliance industry as leading technology and for providing value. Spitfire quality and reliability performance is unparalleled in the industry. They are a solutions provider who works in tandem with a company's team to design, develop and produce proprietary products that enhance a company's competitive position.

About Direct Energy

Direct Energy is part of the Centrica group of companies, one of the largest multi-state providers of deregulated retail energy services in North America. Through the Direct Energy and Energy America brands, and CPL Retail Energy and WTU Retail Energy in South and West Texas, the North American operations have grown to more than five million customer relationships. Globally, the Centrica group of companies is a leading provider of energy and other essential services with more than 45 million customer relationships. For more information, visit www.directenergy.com.

About Cushcraft

Cushcraft Corporation is the world's largest supplier of enhanced antenna solutions for wireless networking and communications. The company designs, manufactures and markets a broad range of high-performance antennas for a variety of commercial applications including:

--  WLAN 802.11b, a, g applications, including:

            --  Single and multi-band applications

            --  Broad range of enterprise applications

            --  Coverage enhancement and range extension for
                residential applications

            --  Hotspot and hotzone applications

            --  Point-to-point bridge applications

    --  Broadband Wireless Access (MMDS, Point to Multipoint)

    --  PCS/ Cellular In-building RF distribution systems