NPD INTELECT’S Early Indicator Panel* Produces Pre-CES numbers

PORT WASHINGTON, NY, January 5, 2001 – As predicted last month by leading marketing information provider NPD INTELECTÒ Market Tracking, holiday 2000 has proven a major success for a select group of consumer electronics and technology categories. Several of these categories experienced sizzling triple digit sales growth. NPD INTELECT’S early indicator panel* tracked a diverse range of 47 consumer electronics categories and 39 technology categories. The holiday sales results cover the period from Thanksgiving through Christmas 2000.

Overall, the 47 consumer electronics categories tracked were down 0.3% in unit sales during the holiday period. However, the group did experience a growth of 5.6% in dollar sales as new high-ticket digital products sold well. On the technology side, despite slow desktop PC sales, several technology categories performed well. Sales among the NPD INTELECT composite of 39 key technology categories were up marginally 1.5% in units and 2.7% in dollars for the holiday period.

According to NPD INTELECT Market Tracking, the fastest growing consumer electronics categories were personal video recorders, DVD players, home theatre in-a-box, digital cameras, and cellular phones. Units and dollars in several of these categories have doubled or tripled.

NPD INTELECT Director of Audio and Video Tracking, Jim Hirschberg commented that, "DVD has been the hottest new product launch in consumer electronics history and has driven new growth in many home theater product categories, particularly home theater in-a-box audio systems. Personal video recorders (PVRs, also known as hard disk video recorders) are growing fast, but this is still a new category that is not yet fully understood by consumers. Other digital audio products, including MP3 players, CD recorders, and portable CD players, sold well and more than compensated for declines in older, cassette-based products."

*NPD INTELECT’S Early Indicator Panel consists of eleven major national retailers and mail order houses.

In the technology segment, desktops and printers decreased in both units and dollars. The big winners were those products that scream portability. Personal digital assistants continued to skyrocket in units and dollars, followed by CD-RW drives and notebooks.

NPD INTELECT Vice President of Technology Products, Sima Vasa notes that, "While desktops are slowing in sales, we have seen the rise in portable products, such as notebooks, pdas, cellular phones, and even headset stereos, all of which support the harried U.S. professional and personal lifestyle."