Clarion Files Suit Against Koby International

GARDENA, Calif., May 25 -- Clarion Corporation of America, a leading manufacturer of mobile entertainment systems, filed its second lawsuit in May, charging another downtown Los Angeles distributor with the unauthorized sale and advertisement of Clarion's products. The suit was filed on Friday, May 2, 20041, 2004, with the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

"This is an ongoing effort on the part of Clarion to protect its dealers from this industry-wide problem," said Ralf Engelbrecht, Clarion's Vice President of Retail Sales. "We are taking the necessary steps to curb transshipping of our products."

Named in the suit is Koby International, Inc. It alleges federal and state business claims, and charges the company with false advertising, unfair competition and tortious interference with contractual relationships between Clarion and its authorized dealers.

Clarion filed its first lawsuit on May 13, 2004 against Babas Electronics, Inc., a downtown Los Angeles distributor. Like the recent filing, the lawsuit charged Babas Electronics with federal and state business claims, alleging false advertising, unfair competition and tortious interference with contractual relationships between Clarion and its authorized dealers.

"This is an ongoing effort on the part of Clarion to protect its dealers and customers, as well as its reputation," said Bruce Ishimatsu, an attorney with Bryan Cave LLP, a St. Louis, Mo.-headquartered international law firm that serves as Clarion's national enforcement legal counsel. "The unauthorized sale of Clarion's products damages the company's dealer network, tarnishes the company's name and misleads consumers."

For further information, please contact: Heather Pecoroni, Marketing Coordinator, Clarion Corporation of America, 661 W. Redondo Beach Blvd., Gardena, CA 90247. Phone: (310) 965-1719, Email: hpecoroni@clarion.com.

About Clarion Corporation:

Clarion Corporation of America has its headquarters in Gardena, California. Clarion Corporation of America is the largest subsidiary of Tokyo based Clarion Company Ltd., and is ranked among the top 100 Global OEM Suppliers by Automotive News. Clarion, an international leader in car audio and electronics since 1940, is positioned as the number one independent car audio manufacturer. The company conducts research, development, engineering, design, manufacturing, and sales & marketing of entertainment, communications, security, and navigation products for the automotive environment, including IVCS (in-vehicle computing systems). Clarion has more than 14,000 employees worldwide and 24 factories in 10 countries, with marketing and sales affiliates in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia. Clarion is located on the Web at www.clarion.com.