Texas Instruments, Zebra Technologies and Symbol Technologies Form Alliance to A

Texas Instruments, Zebra Technologies and Symbol Technologies Form Alliance to Advance UHF RFID Applications. Industry Leaders to Offer Compatible RFID Smart Label Supply Chain Solutions

Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN), Zebra Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: ZBRA), and Symbol Technologies Corporation , leading providers of automatic identification solutions, today announced a strategic alliance to develop and market passive, ultra high frequency (UHF) radio frequency identification (RFID) technology for supply chain logistics applications.

The alliance's goal is to bring a complete UHF RFID solution to the market, including smart labels, antennas, handheld and fixed readers, printer/encoders and connectivity software. This suite of products will meet emerging RFID standards and be readily implemented by end users in their logistics operations.

Compared with other frequencies, UHF RFID technology, which operates in the range of 862 to 928 MHz, offers the longer read range needed in large warehouse environments for the rapid and accurate identification and tracking of individual pallets and containers. This vital information gives a company a tool to increase overall logistics productivity, accuracy, and quality.

UHF RFID Alliance

The alliance plans to initially target logistics applications in North America and other areas with similar government regulations allowing use of the 902 to 928 MHz portion of the radio spectrum for deployment of UHF RFID technology. The companies expect field trials to begin during the fourth quarter of 2000.

Each company will incorporate Texas Instruments' UHF technology into its product offerings. Texas Instruments will supply smart label inlays; high-power readers and antenna systems for reading smart labels; and low-power UHF reader modules for incorporation into handheld terminals and smart label printer/encoders. Texas Instrument's Team-Tag-it label partners will convert inlays into smart labels.

Zebra Technologies will develop smart label printer/encoders for UHF RFID smart labels. Smart labels incorporate small, flexible passive RFID transponders into traditional thermal bar code labels. Symbol Technologies will integrate UHF RFID reader technology into its portable terminals and scanners, which read and write to smart labels once initially encoded and applied to the end user logistics' application. Symbol will also provide system integration services to connect users' automatic data capture systems to UHF RFID technology.

Texas Instruments, Zebra Technologies, and Symbol Technologies are committed to the development of RFID standards and have played an active role in RFID standardization efforts including the recently announced Uniform Code Council (UCC) Global Tag (GTAG) initiative and International Standard Organization's (ISO) item standardization group (ISO/IEC JTC1 SC31). RFID standards, such as those recently announced by ISO for 13.56 MHz smart labels (ISO/IEC 15693-2), provide end-users with a wider range of choices in technology suppliers and help to ensure reliable and compatible RFID system components.

Texas Instruments recently announced its teaming with SCS Corporation of San Diego to develop a range of UHF products. This agreement with Symbol Technologies and Zebra Technologies does nothing to change Texas Instruments' agreement with SCS Corporation.

UHF RFID Alliance

Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN) is a global semiconductor company and the world's leading designer and supplier of digital signal processing and analog technologies, the engines driving the digitalization of electronics. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company's products also include materials and controls, educational and productivity solutions, and digital imaging. The company has manufacturing or sales operations in more than 25 countries. More information is located on the World Wide Web at .

Texas Instruments entered the radio frequency identification (RFID) market in 1991 with the world-wide introduction of TIRIS (Texas Instruments Registration and Identification System). Fusing together core competencies in advanced semiconductors, microelectronic packaging and computer system design, TIRIS has become a standard-setting technology used in thousands of object tracking and data collection applications around the world. More information is located on the World Wide Web at .

Zebra Technologies Corporation manufactures and distributes on-demand bar code label printers, secure ID printing systems and plastic card printers used in automatic identification and plastic card personalization applications worldwide. The company's products are sold under the Zebra, Eltron, and Comtec brand names. Businesses around the world recognize Zebra thermal bar code label printers for their quality, durability, and technological leadership. The company also offers software and related supplies, including more than 300 label and ribbon combinations. Zebra's customers include more than 70 percent of the FORTUNE 500. The company's stock is traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol ZBRA. Information about Zebra Technologies can be found at .