New York

Arbitron announced that, beginning September 2001, it will conduct syndicated radio audience measurement services for Mexico City broadcasters, advertisers and agencies. The Mexico City radio ratings service will be the first syndicated radio measurement conducted by Arbitron outside the United States.

Broadcasters that have signed long-term commitments include Grupo ACIR, Imagen Telecomunicaciones, MVS Radio, Nucleo Radio Mil, and Organizacion Radio Formula. These broadcasters operate 23 stations in Mexico City and the Valley of Mexico. Advertising agencies and media buying services that have signed contracts or letters of intent include BBDO - OMD, Control Media, FCB Worldwide, Initiative Media, Leo Burnett - Starcom, McCann Universal, Media Planning México, and Mindshare. These agencies account for more than two-thirds of radio ad spending in the Mexico City radio market.

Each quarter, beginning in September 2001, Arbitron will use a Spanish-language version of a standard seven-day radio diary to survey the radio listening behavior and key socio-economic characteristics of approximately 4,800 Mexico City residents, age 12 and older. In-person interviewers will place the diaries at the households selected to participate in the survey and later retrieve the diaries at the end of the survey week (This differs from Arbitron's practice in the United States that uses telephone interviewers to recruit survey participants and the U.S. mail to place and later retrieve diaries for processing). Collected Mexico City diaries will be shipped to Arbitron's Columbia Research and Technology Center for processing and tabulation using the company's existing processing infrastructure, which has been adapted to handle the Mexico City diaries.

Arbitron successfully tested the feasibility of adapting its standard diary method and processing procedures in October 1998 and again in September 2000. The first data from the Fall 2001 Mexico City radio survey will be released in February 2002. Thereafter, Arbitron will deliver monthly reports of the Mexico City audience based on a rolling average of the three most recent months being surveyed.

All audience information will be delivered via software applications only.