Audible and iriver Announce Audio Player and Content Service Technology and Co-Marketing Initiative

Business Wire, Jan 6, 2005

LAS VEGAS -- Audible and iriver Team Up to Promote iriver H10 5GB Hard-Drive Audio Players as AudibleReady; Able to Play audible.com's 60,000 Hours of Audiobooks and More

Audible, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBL), the leading provider of digitally delivered spoken word audio, and iriver America, the leading innovator in digital entertainment, today announced a technology integration and co-marketing agreement that will bring the audible.com(R) Internet audio service to users of iriver H10 5GB* hard-drive digital audio players. As part of this multi-year agreement, the companies have also agreed to make future iriver portable audio players compatible with audible.com.

Expected to ship as AudibleReady(R) devices in the first quarter of 2005, hard-drive iriver H10 5GB audio players will be capable of storing and playing back hundreds of hours of Audible's(R) audio titles, with room to spare for combining the spoken word with a listener's music selections.

This means that H10 5GB hard-drive portable music players can play Audible's 60,000 hours of valuable audio from more than 180 audiobook publishers, broadcasters, and business information providers. As part of this multi-year agreement, the companies have also agreed to make selected future iriver portable audio players compatible with audible.com.

Audible.com customers who sign up for a 12-month membership to an AudibleListener membership plan will be able to buy an iriver H10 5GB hard-drive audio player through numerous retail partners and receive a $100 rebate or credit. This rebate offer will be valid at least through the first quarter of 2005 or longer. Current iriver H10 5GB users will be offered a free trial month of the AudibleListener membership plan. This gives users PremiumListener - any two audiobooks from the more than 6,500 titles available, normally a $21.95 value - or Basic Listener - one audiobook and one 1-month subscription to any of the programs in Audible's unique Subscription Center, which normally costs $14.95.

iriver and Audible are working together to promote the audible.com audio service on the iriver H10 5GB packaging, which includes links to the audible.com Web site and AudibleManager software at iriver.com. The companies also announced that users of iriver's iFP-700 and iFP-800 flash-based portable audio players will be able to install a free firmware upgrade from both iriver.com and audible.com that will add Audible's features and audio format compatibility.

"iriver is a very important addition to Audible's fast-growing family of technology platform and marketing partners," said Donald Katz, Chairman and CEO, Audible, Inc. "We look forward to working with iriver to convey the utility and pleasure of listening to audio from audible.com."

"iriver is committed to offering a wide array of services to our customers, who will be well served by the addition of Audible's audio service," added Jonathan Sasse, President, iriver America. "By providing customers access to Audible's valuable news, information, and entertainment, we enhance the consumer experience, which is a primary goal for both of our companies."

iriver H10 5GB player features:

--Plays up to 150 hours of digital music*

--5GB of internal storage*

--Vivid color display

--Ultra-intuitive interface with convenient touch strip

--Displays digital photos

--Slim, lightweight design

--PlaysForSure enabled

--Rechargeable, removable battery lasts up to 12 hours

--Built-in FM tuner and FM recorder

--Integrated voice recorder

--Ultra-fast USB 2.0 transfers

--Supports MP3, WMA, JPEG, AA and TXT files

--Enhanced 3D audio (supports SRS WOW(TM))

--Dimensions: 3.8" x 2.2" x 0.6"

--Weight: 3.4 ounces

About Audible, Inc.:

Audible(R) (www.audible.com(R)) is the Internet's leading premium spoken audio source. Content from Audible is downloaded and played back on personal computers, CDs, or AudibleReady(R) computer-based mobile devices. Audible has 60,000 hours of audio programs from more than 180 content partners that include leading audiobook publishers, broadcasters, entertainers, magazine and newspaper publishers, and business information providers. Audible.com is Amazon.com's and the Apple iTunes Music Store's pre-eminent provider of spoken word products for downloading or streaming via the Web. Additionally, the Company is strategically aligned with Random House, Inc. in the first-ever imprint to produce spoken word content specifically suited for digital distribution, Random House Audible. Among the Company's key business relationships are Apple Corp., Bertelsmann AG, Creative Labs, Holtzbrinck NetworXs, Hewlett-Packard Company, Microsoft Corporation, palmOne, Inc., PhatNoise Inc., RealNetworks, Inc., Rio Audio, Roxio, Inc., Sony Electronics, Texas Instruments Inc., and VoiceAge Corporation.

About iriver

iriver is the leading innovator in delivering portable digital media devices. iriver provides consumers with the viewing, listening and recording flexibility to accommodate their active lifestyles by manufacturing award-winning hybrid products supporting existing and emerging formats. Milpitas-based iriver America, Inc. can be found on the Web at www.iriveramerica.com.