ABI Research Affirms Zebra's RFID Leadership

Zebra Earns Top Ranking Among Peers for Innovation and Execution

VERNON HILLS, Ill., Feb. 15 -- Zebra Technologies , a global leader in delivering on-demand printing solutions for business improvement, earned the top rating among RFID companies focused exclusively on smart label printing/encoding in the RFID Vendor Matrix, a major new research release from ABI Research.

New York-based ABI Research rated companies by technology leadership, ability to deliver product, R&D funding, intellectual property, product diversity, solution offerings, quality of partnerships and alliances, market share and other factors. Zebra ranked in the top 10 percent of the nearly 150 RFID companies that ABI rated. Zebra was the only company with a predominantly printer/encoder product line to rank in the top 15, and was one of only two in the top 50. Zebra also partners or collaborates with the top six companies in the ABI RFID Vendor Matrix.

"In order to stand out in this field, a competitive company like Zebra must continually prove its ability to be innovative and to deliver the product," said Erik Michielsen, ABI Research director of RFID & M2M Research. "Technology needs both invention and execution. Some companies excel at innovation. Others are renowned for their effective implementation of new products, services and strategies. Companies like Zebra who excel at both are true leaders in their field."

"We value this honor more than designations based on research that simply tries to count shipments and measure market share," said Bob Cornick, vice president and general manager of RFID at Zebra. "Our customers trust Zebra to help them extract the business benefits from RFID technology, and we are pleased that ABI has recognized our commitment."

Zebra has been researching and developing RFID technologies for nearly 10 years. It was the first company to produce an integrated, on-demand RFID printer/encoder more than five years ago. It has continued its leadership through a recent string of innovations, including:

  --  In January, 2006 the first supplier to meet Wal-Mart's EPCglobal
      second generation (Gen2) RFID protocol requirement used Zebra
      printer/encoders to produce their compliant smart labels;
  --  Zebra was the first company to provide a free, publicly downloadable
      firmware upgrade so its printer/encoders could produce Gen2 and still
      support previous protocols;
  --  Zebra was the first company to demonstrate successful Gen2
      printing/encoding using inlays from multiple leading suppliers;
  --  Through its SAP-certified XML Schema v. 2.1, Zebra gives SAP customers
      the widest range of printer/encoders for outputting RFID smart labels
      directly from their SAP software solutions;
  --  Zebra smart label printer/encoders are now available in 39 countries
      on five continents, having recently earned regulatory approval in
      Taiwan and South Korea;
  --  Other market research established Zebra has the largest installed base
      of both high frequency and EPC ultra-high frequency (UHF) models in
      every category and geographic region, covering the widest range of
      applications.

Today, Zebra has the broadest printer/encoder product line for use in supply chain applications. Zebra is playing an active role in the development of RFID smart label technology, standards and applications for supply chain and business improvement programs designed to help suppliers to the U.S. Department of Defense, Wal-Mart and other retailers meet the RFID EPC compliance labeling requirements. For more information on Zebra's RFID solutions, visit http://www.rfid.zebra.com/ or call +1 800 423 0442.

About ABI Research

Founded in 1990 and headquartered in New York, ABI Research maintains global operations supporting annual research programs, intelligence services and market reports in automotive, wireless, semiconductors, broadband, and energy. For information visit http://www.abiresearch.com/ , or call +1.516.624.2500.

About Zebra Technologies

Zebra Technologies delivers innovative and reliable on- demand printing solutions for business improvement and security applications in 90 countries around the world. More than 90% of Fortune 500 companies use Zebra(R)-brand printers. A broad range of applications benefit from Zebra- brand thermal bar code, "smart" label and receipt printers, and Eltron(R)- brand card printers, resulting in enhanced security, increased productivity, improved quality, lower costs, and better customer service. The company has an installed base of nearly three million printers, including RFID printer/encoders and wireless mobile solutions, and also offers software, connectivity solutions, and printing supplies. Information about Zebra bar code products can be found at http://www.zebra.com/ .