Teletrax Adds New Direct Response Advertising Clients Including hawthorne direct and ThermoSpas

NEW YORK, Dec. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Teletrax, the global broadcast intelligence company, today announced the addition of three new direct response advertising industry clients in a further penetration of this vibrant television market segment.

A subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated , Teletrax offers the first and only digital video monitoring and content tracking service that provides vital television intelligence on a global scale to video providers such as entertainment studios, news organizations, TV syndicators, and the advertising industry. Teletrax is a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands and Medialink.

Throughout the past 12 months, Teletrax has gained significant traction in the direct response industry with the addition of new clients and technology integration partnerships. The clients announced today include leading media buying agency hawthorne direct Inc. and direct response marketer ThermoSpas, Inc. hawthorne direct and ThermoSpas, along with the third client, a direct response firm, each will utilize the Teletrax(TM) suite of broadcast verification services to monitor and track all broadcast, cable and satellite television airings of their short- and long-form direct response programming.

hawthorne direct, a full-service direct response television advertising agency, has chosen Teletrax to provide valuable intelligence on the performance of its clients' advertising campaigns, and will utilize the media tracking and reporting capabilities to complement the services it currently provides.

"Client service is of the utmost importance to us," said Rich Contino, vice president - campaign development and media account management, hawthorne direct. "We have a responsibility to maintain a high level of accountability and are committed to providing clients with accurate and timely data on the performance of their marketing efforts. The foundation of hawthorne's business lies in our proven ability to seamlessly grow and manage the success of our clients' campaigns. Our service is complemented by Teletrax's media intelligence to provide a comprehensive picture on campaigns from inception to completion, arming our clients with the most valuable tools available to maximize profits."

ThermoSpas, a leading supplier of hot tubs, spas and hot tub accessories, will rely on Teletrax's broadcast intelligence to aid in the management of its own direct response advertising campaigns.

"Traditionally, our company has maintained responsibility for placing and tracking our own media buys, which have become an increasingly time-consuming task as our business continues to advance," said Chick Miller, director of marketing at ThermoSpas. "We require instantaneous measurement of advertising campaign effectiveness. The immediacy of the intelligence gathered by Teletrax enables us to more quickly and accurately determine return-on- investment, which is essential to help us calibrate our marketing efforts."

"Teletrax is fast becoming the broadcast verification standard in the direct response industry, further evidenced by the significant growth we have experienced through 2006," said Andy Nobbs, president of Teletrax. "We are very pleased to end this year on a high note with the addition of three new clients in this sector, including hawthorne direct and ThermoSpas. We are confident that our ability to provide accurate and precise media intelligence to help clients manage the effectiveness of their DR campaigns and marketing efforts, as well as analytical data to allow the rapid computation of return- on-investment, are crucial components to our success in the industry."

Launched in 2002 as a service developed by a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands and Medialink, with an underlying technology that is patent protected both by Philips and Digimarc Corp. , Teletrax's technology embeds an imperceptible and indelible digital watermark into video whenever it is edited, transmitted, broadcast or duplicated.

A global network of decoders, or "detectors," then captures all occurrences of the embedded video being transmitted via satellite, cable or terrestrially and generates tracking reports for the content owners. Reports of individual broadcast airings are delivered online in near real-time to each client's custom-designed portal or in data file transfers. Each client's broadcast activity is updated dynamically, 24 hours a day, enabling clients to respond immediately to reported results such as changes in end-user preferences or detections of unauthorized use.

Teletrax provides vital broadcast television intelligence to video content providers such as entertainment companies, news organizations, TV syndicators, and the advertising industry. The company currently maintains a proprietary network of detectors that monitors the television broadcasts of 1,300 channels from more than 50 nations, including the top 185 markets in the United States, representing more than 90% of all U.S. television households. Its international network comprises 12 monitoring stations in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Australia, South and Central America, and Canada.

Entertainment, news and media organizations both within and outside of the United States that also have contracted to use Teletrax for the tracking of news video, advertising or promotional content include ABC Television Network, BBC, Buena Vista Television, Fox Broadcasting Company, NBC News Channel, The NBC Agency, NBC Universal Domestic Television, Reuters Television, Tribune Entertainment, United Nations, A1GP, Advanced Results Marketing, Direct Impact Group, Direct Response Media, ITN Networks, Mercury Media, Euro RSCG 4D DRTV, Media Review International, and Medialink. A number of other companies are also in active trials with the Teletrax service.

About Teletrax:

Teletrax (http://www.teletrax.tv/) is the world's first global video broadcast intelligence and video asset management service. Launched in 2002, Teletrax provides clients with video watermarking services that enable them to precisely track and monitor where, when and how their content is being aired via cable, satellite and terrestrially. Clients can easily evaluate, respond to and manage broadcast information relating to their video content through Teletrax's Web-based reporting tools. Teletrax yields critical media intelligence that is of proven value to motion picture studios, news organizations, network and syndicated TV programmers, TV sports producers and distributors, brand marketers, corporate communicators, and advertising and public relations agencies. Teletrax is headquartered in London, has offices in New York and Hollywood, and maintains its operations hub in Norwalk, Connecticut.

About hawthorne direct:

hawthorne direct is a full-service direct response advertising agency, specializing in creative and production, Long- and Short-form media buying, telemarketing/fulfillment management and integrated marketing. hawthorne is celebrating 20 years of excellence in direct response television. The agency is a founding member of the Electronic Retailing Association (ERA) and valued member of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) and the DMA Broadcast Council.

About ThermoSpas:

Founded in 1983, ThermoSpas, Inc. is a privately owned manufacturer and retailer of hot tubs, swim spas and outdoor living products. Based in Wallingford, CT, the company is the largest hot tub retailer in the U.S. and also sells in sections of Europe and the Middle East. ThermoSpas is the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions including the APSP Inspire Award for spa promotion and innovation, the APSP Eagle Award for commitment to industry advancement, the Consumers Digest Best Buy Award and the Better Business Bureau Consumer Education Award. For more information on ThermoSpas, please visit http://www.thermospas.com/.

About Medialink:

Medialink is a global leader in providing unique news and marketing media strategies and solutions that enable corporations and organizations to inform and educate their target audiences with maximum impact on television, radio and the Internet. The Company offers creative services and multimedia distribution programs including video and audio news and short-form programming. Through its subsidiaries, Medialink also provides Teletrax(TM), a global television tracking and media asset management service to help clients determine return on investment from their programming and advertising efforts. Based in New York, Medialink has offices in major cities throughout the United States and an international hub in London. For additional investor and financial information, please visit the Investor Relations section of the Company's Web site (http://www.medialink.com/).

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