Arbitron's Media and Marketing Research Enhanced by Echelon Power Line Technology; Low-Cost, Reliable Networking Components Facilitate Data Collection From Electronic Survey Participants

Business Wire, Sept 28, 2005

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Echelon Corporation (NASDAQ:ELON), the world's leading supplier of LonWorks(R) control networking components, announced today that Arbitron Inc. will incorporate Echelon's power line technology in the pilot panel of a media and marketing research service that is currently being deployed in 6,000 U.S. homes. The innovative research service will provide participating advertisers with a comprehensive view of media exposure in and out of the home. Arbitron is an international media and marketing research firm serving radio broadcasters, cable companies, advertisers, advertising agencies and outdoor advertising companies in the United States, Mexico and Europe.

"Echelon's power line technology assists us in reliably and inexpensively transmitting back to Arbitron all the listening and viewing data that the Portable People Meter (PPM(SM)) collects from our survey participants," said Ron Kolessar, vice president of technology, Arbitron Inc. "The first step in the transmission of the survey data occurs over standard household power lines -- there's nothing additional for us to install in the home. Many of our survey volunteers can set up the system in less than five minutes -- it's truly plug-and-play. Eliminating the need to send a technician to each and every survey home helps control the overall cost of the survey process."

Each survey volunteer is outfitted with an Arbitron Portable People Meter (PPM(SM)), a small device the size of a cell phone. The PPM electronically tracks exposure to audio-based media such as radio, broadcast television, cable television, cinema advertising, in-store audio systems and more by recognizing and collecting an inaudible code that is embedded in program audio. The system can track digital and analog broadcasts, whether carried over the air, by cable, satellite or the Internet. Since the system is not tied to a receiver or other piece of hardware in the home, data is recorded even when a survey volunteer is away from home, for example, listening to the radio in the car, or watching a television show at a neighbor's home.

Integral to the system is a docking station and hub, each containing an Echelon PL 3150(R) Power Line Smart Transceiver. When the volunteer plugs the PPM into the docking station to recharge the battery, the stored media exposure data is transferred via existing power lines to a communicator for transmission to Arbitron over a telephone line.

"Our market leading power line technology offers an extremely reliable, field-proven means of communicating over power lines," said Michael Tennefoss, Echelon's vice president of marketing. "Arbitron needed a signaling solution that worked every time, yet was sufficiently low-cost to be used in a consumer application. Echelon's Power Line Smart Transceiver provided the perfect solution, and demonstrates how easily similar products can be integrated in a home or business -- simply by plugging them into a power outlet."

About Echelon's Power Line Technology

Echelon is the industry leader in power line signaling for use in control networks with over 10 years of pioneering technology development. The company's power line products communicate with one another over power lines, eliminating the need for any new wires or complex RF (radio frequency) components. The same 4th generation technology utilized in Arbitron's media tracking system has been field-proven in over 25 million smart electricity meters, street lighting systems, home appliances, and rail and truck control systems worldwide.

About Arbitron Inc.

Arbitron Inc. (NYSE:ARB) is an international media and marketing research firm serving radio broadcasters, radio networks, cable companies, advertisers, advertising agencies, outdoor advertising companies and the online radio industry in the United States, Mexico and Europe. Through their Scarborough Research joint venture with VNU, Inc., Arbitron also provides media and marketing research services to the broadcast television, magazine, newspaper and online industries.

Arbitron helps media companies, advertisers and marketers understand media audiences and reach consumers more effectively. Their services and software help clients make sense of the marketplace, turn information into revenue and grow their businesses.

About Echelon Corporation

Echelon Corporation (NASDAQ:ELON) is a pioneer and world leader in control networking -- networks that connect machines and other electronic devices -- for the purpose of sensing, monitoring and controlling the world around us. Echelon's LonWorks platform for control networking was released in 1990 and has become a worldwide standard in the building, industrial, transportation, and home automation markets. Launched in 2003, Echelon's Networked Energy Services system is an open, extensible, advanced metering infrastructure that can bring benefits to every aspect of a utility's operation, from metering and customer services to distribution operations and value-added business. In 2005 Echelon released the world's first embedded control network infrastructure, the Pyxos platform, extending the benefits of networking inside of machines to the sensors and actuators that make them function.