Houston - Nov 8, 2006 - As part of the companies' joint effort to develop an electronic ratings survey system, the Media Audio and Ipsos are planning to conduct a market trial in Houston. The test will include an expert witness test in which a diary measurement and a metered measurement come from the same respondent in the same test. The two companies state that no other research company has done such a test.

The test announcement comes five weeks after the firms were named in a suit filed by Arbitron alleging patent infringement.

The Ipsos system uses a cell phone to gather data on a survey participant's listening habits, whereas the Arbiton Portable People Meter asks participants to carry a pager-sized monitoring device.