ZigBee Alliance Establishes New European Headquarters

By Zigbee Alliance, PRNE
Sunday, September 19, 2010

EU headquarters will focus on driving Smart Grid standardization efforts and addressing EU specific market needs for ZigBee Alliance members

SAN RAMON, California, September 20, 2010 - The ZigBee(R) Alliance, a global ecosystem of companies creating wireless
solutions supporting energy management in residential, commercial and
consumer electronics applications, today announced Larry Taylor as director
of European standards development and the head of its new European office
located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Taylor, who has more than 20 years of
experience with International Standards, will lead a team responsible for
expanding the Alliance's efforts in addressing the European Union (EU)'s
specific needs in energy management standards and Smart Grid activities. The
European HQ will also focus on supporting its growing European-based
membership and expanding its growing role in EU implementations of ZigBee
Smart Energy in wireless advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and home area
networks (HAN).

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More than 150 Alliance members, or 40 percent of the Alliance's
membership, have European operations focused on ZigBee-related projects. The
European HQ will help foster new partnerships with energy-related EU
organizations while bolstering efforts with existing collaborations with the
European Smart Metering Industry Group (ESMIG) and the Device Language
Message Specification (DLMS) User Association. The European HQ will expedite
ZigBee's growing emergence as the leading choice for wireless EU Smart Grid
projects and promote greater adoption of other innovative ZigBee standards
offering solutions for consumer electronics, home automation, health care and
telecom.

"ZigBee is committed to playing an active role in EU Smart Grid
standardization efforts by sharing our expertise with ZigBee Smart Energy
implementations already underway around the world," said Bob Heile, chairman
of the ZigBee Alliance. "Our new European HQ is a testament to placing Europe
as a priority so we can continue helping our strong and growing European
membership base continue to benefit from ZigBee."

Growth in EU Smart Grid initiatives is being fuelled by government energy
and environmental policies, plus rising consumer interest in energy
conservation. The European Parliament's passage of the 3rd Energy Package
last year requires the outfitting of 80 percent of EU electricity customers
with smart meters by 2020. In addition, according to analyst firm Berg
Insight, the installed base of smart electricity meters in Europe will grow
at a compound annual growth rate of 17.9 percent between 2009 and 2015 to
reach 111.4 million. The European HQ will help ZigBee Alliance members
understand and address EU specific needs as developments within the EU market
unfold.

"There is a growing need among consumers for more control over household
devices through easy-to-use and green wireless automation systems to conserve
energy, and our European members are working to incorporate innovative ZigBee
standards wherever possible to meet this growing need," said Taylor. "The
ZigBee Alliance European HQ will help members leverage and address changing
market needs, and work with EU standards bodies to ensure ZigBee Smart Energy
contributes to evolving EU Smart Grid requirements."

ZigBee Smart Energy - The Standard for Home Area Networks

ZigBee Smart Energy enables wireless communication between energy service
providers, utilities and common household devices such as smart thermostats
and appliances. It improves energy efficiency by allowing consumers to choose
interoperable energy saving products from different manufacturers and link
them together, giving the consumer the means to manage their energy
consumption more precisely using automation and near real-time information.
It also helps utilities and energy providers implement new advanced metering
and demand response programs to drive greater energy management and
efficiency, while responding to changing government requirements. For more
information and a list of ZigBee Certified products, visit:
www.ZigBee.org/SmartEnergy.

ZigBee: Control your world

ZigBee offers green and global wireless standards connecting the widest
range of devices to work together intelligently and help you control your
world. The ZigBee Alliance is an open, non-profit association of
approximately 400 members driving development of innovative, reliable and
easy-to-use ZigBee standards. The Alliance promotes worldwide adoption of
ZigBee as the leading wirelessly networked, sensing and control standard for
use in consumer, commercial and industrial areas. For more information,
visit: www.ZigBee.org.

Kevin Schader of ZigBee Alliance, +1-925-275-6672, kschader at inventures.com; or Earlene Tang of GolinHarris, +1-714-918-8215, etang at golinharris.com, for ZigBee Alliance

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