Arbitron Inc. (Form: 8-K)

ARBITRON INC. REPORTS 2008 THIRD QUARTER FINANCIAL RESULTS
Revenue increases 9.9 percent;
Reports earnings per share (diluted) of $0.63;
Company provides status of litigation involving New York and New Jersey Attorneys General;
Company updates financial guidance for year-end 2008.

NEW YORK, October 21, 2008 – Arbitron Inc. (NYSE: ARB) today announced results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2008.

Net income for the quarter was $17.0 million, or $0.63 per share (diluted), compared with $17.2 million, or $0.58 per share (diluted) for the third quarter of 2007.

For the third quarter of 2008, the Company reported revenue of $102.5 million, an increase of 9.9 percent over revenue of $93.3 million during the third quarter of 2007.

Costs and expenses for the third quarter increased by 14.5 percent, from $63.0 million in 2007 to $72.1 million in 2008, due primarily to planned expenditures for the commercialization of the Portable People Meter^TM ratings service. In the third quarter of 2008, share-based compensation amounted to $2.1 million, up from $1.6 million in the third quarter of 2007.

Earnings before interest and income tax expense (EBIT) for the quarter were $28.2 million, compared with EBIT of $27.1 million for the third quarter of 2007.

Income from continuing operations for the quarter was $16.9 million or $0.63 per share (diluted), compared with $17.1 million, or $0.57 per share (diluted) in the third quarter of 2007.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2008, revenue was $275.2 million, an increase of 6.5 percent over revenue of $258.3 million for the same period in 2007.

Earnings before interest and income tax expense (EBIT) decreased 1.3 percent from $57.1 million in the first nine months of 2007 to $56.4 million for the same period in 2008. Net income for the nine-month period decreased 7.3 percent to $33.8 million compared with $36.5 million in 2007. Earnings per share (diluted) for the nine months in 2008 were $1.23 compared with $1.21 per share (diluted) last year.

On January 31, 2008, Arbitron concluded the sale of CSW Research Limited (“Continental”), its UK-based custom research business. As a result, Continental’s financial results have been reclassified as a Discontinued Operation for all periods presented. In the third quarter of 2008, the Company reported income (net of tax) from Continental of $55 thousand. For the year to date, the loss from discontinued operations (net of tax) was $15 thousand.

Management comment on third quarter 2008 results
Stephen Morris, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Arbitron, made the following comments regarding the third quarter 2008:

“On October 6, 2008, Arbitron commercialized the Portable People Meter radio ratings services in eight new markets, including in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco. Our priority, as we launch these services, is to continue the help we are giving broadcasters and agencies in their transition to electronic measurement and to maintain advertiser confidence in radio as one of the most effective of all ad media.”

“In the third quarter, we announced significant quality enhancements to our diary services, including a plan to add cell-phone-only households to the diary sample and to accelerate the development of electronic and online alternatives to the paper and pencil diary for all markets.”

“We realize that any transition brings both challenges and opportunities. Our goal is to work through the challenges and to take advantage of the opportunities for the radio industry,” said Mr. Morris.

Recent Litigation
As previously disclosed, on October 6, Arbitron commenced a civil action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeking a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief against the New York Attorney General, and on October 10, Arbitron brought a civil action in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey seeking a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief against the New Jersey Attorney General, in each case seeking to prevent any attempt by the Attorneys General to restrain Arbitron’s publication of its PPM listening estimates.

Also as previously disclosed, on October 10, the State of New York commenced litigation against Arbitron in the Supreme Court of New York for New York County alleging false advertising and deceptive business practices in violation of New York consumer protection and civil rights laws, and the State of New Jersey commenced litigation against Arbitron in the Superior Court of New Jersey for Middlesex County, alleging violations of New Jersey consumer fraud and civil rights laws, in each case relating to the marketing and commercialization in those states of our Portable People Meter radio ratings service.

Details of these civil actions are available in the press releases issued by the Company on October 6, 2008 and October 10, 2008 and in the Current Reports on Form 8-K Arbitron furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 6, 2008 and October 10, 2008.

Company Updates Guidance for 2008
For the full year 2008, Arbitron continues to expect revenue to increase between 8 percent and 10 percent compared to last year’s revenue from continuing operations.

Due to the impact of Hurricane Ike on our operations in Houston, and costs and expenses related to litigation, including the litigation described above, and other interactions with governmental entities, primarily regarding our PPM radio ratings services, we now expect that if all of the ongoing litigation and governmental entity activity were to continue at current levels and we were to continue to incur related expenses at current rates through the end of the year, earnings per share from continuing operations (diluted) would likely fall into the lower end of our previously stated range of $1.30 to $1.44 for the full year 2008.

Earnings conference call: schedule and access
Arbitron will host a conference call at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. The Company invites you to listen to the call by dialing (toll free) 888-868-9083. The conference call can be accessed from outside of the United States by dialing 973-935-8512. To participate, users will need to use the following code: 66831761. The call will also be available live on the Internet at the following sites: www.arbitron.com, www.ccbn.com and www.streetevents.com.

A replay of the call will be available from 12:00 p.m. on October 21 through 11:59 p.m. on November 21, 2008. To access the replay, please call (toll free) 800-642-1687 in the United States, or 706-645-9291 if you’re calling from outside of the United States. To access the replay, users will need to enter the following code: 66831761

Presentation of Non-GAAP Information
The terms EBIT (earnings before interest and income taxes) and EBITDA (earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization) are non-GAAP financial measures that the management of Arbitron believes are useful to investors in evaluating the Company’s results. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, and not as a replacement for, or superior to, either income from continuing operations, as an indicator of Arbitron’s operating performance, or cash flow, as a measure of Arbitron’s liquidity. In addition, because EBIT and EBITDA may not be calculated identically by all companies, the presentation here may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. For a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP equivalent, see the EBIT and EBITDA Non-GAAP Reconciliation, along with related footnotes, below.

Arbitron Inc. (NYSE: ARB) is a media and marketing research firm serving the media – radio, television, cable, online radio and out-of-home – as well as advertisers and advertising agencies in the United States. Arbitron’s core businesses are measuring network and local market radio audiences across the United States; surveying the retail, media and product patterns of local market consumers; and providing application software used for analyzing media audience and marketing information data. The company has developed the Portable People Meter, a new technology for media and marketing research.

Through its Scarborough Research joint venture with The Nielsen Company, Arbitron provides additional media and marketing research services to the broadcast television, newspaper and online industries.

Arbitron’s marketing and business units are supported by a world-renowned research and technology organization located in Columbia, Maryland. Its executive offices are located in New York City.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The statements regarding Arbitron Inc. and its subsidiaries in this document that are not historical in nature, particularly those that utilize terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “likely,” ”expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “believes,” or “plans,” or comparable terminology, are forward-looking statements based on current expectations about future events, which we have derived from information currently available to us. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause our results to be materially different from results implied in such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, in no particular order, whether we will be able to:

•

successfully implement the commercialization of our Portable People Meter^TM service;

•

successfully maintain industry usage of our services in light of governmental regulation, legislation, litigation, activism or adverse public relations efforts prompted by various industry groups and market segments;

•

successfully design, recruit and maintain PPM panels that appropriately balance research quality, panel size and operational cost;

•

complete the Media Rating Council (“MRC”) audits of our local market PPM ratings services in a timely manner and successfully obtain and/or maintain MRC accreditation for our audience measurement business;

•

successfully execute our business strategies, including entering into potential acquisition, joint-venture or other material third-party agreements;

•

effectively manage the impact, if any, of any further ownership shifts in the radio and advertising agency industries;

•

respond to rapidly changing technological needs of our customer base, including creating new proprietary software systems and new customer products and services that meet these needs in a timely manner;

•

successfully manage the impact on our business of any economic downturn, generally, and in the advertising market, in particular;

•

successfully manage the impact on costs of data collection due to lower respondent cooperation in surveys, privacy concerns, consumer trends, technology changes and/or government regulations; and

•

successfully develop and implement technology solutions to measure new forms of audio content and delivery, multimedia and advertising in an increasingly competitive environment.

There are a number of additional important factors that could cause actual events or our actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, the risk factors set forth in the caption “ITEM 1A. — RISK FACTORS” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007, and elsewhere, and any subsequent periodic or current reports filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In addition, any forward-looking statements contained in this document represent our estimates only as of the date hereof, and should not be relied upon as representing our estimates as of any subsequent date. While we may elect to update forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so, even if our estimates change.

Arbitron Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Income
Three Months Ended September 30, 2008 and 2007
(In thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)


	Three Months Ended
	September 30,									%
	2008			2007			Change			Change
Revenue	$	102,526		$	93,322		$	9,204			9.9	%
Costs and expenses
Cost of revenue		41,795			34,451			7,344			21.3	%
Selling, general and administrative		20,058			18,965			1,093			5.8	%
Research and development		10,274			9,587			687			7.2	%
Total costs and expenses		72,127			63,003			9,124			14.5	%
Operating income		30,399			30,319			80			0.3	%
Equity in net loss of affiliate(s)		(2,194	)		(3,263	)		1,069			(32.8	%)
Earnings before interest and income taxes (1)		28,205			27,056			1,149			4.2	%
Interest income		127			554			(427	)		(77.1	%)
Interest expense		644			95			549			577.9	%
Income from continuing operations before income taxes		27,688			27,515			173			0.6	%
Income tax expense		10,788			10,394			394			3.8	%
Income from continuing operations		16,900			17,121			(221	)		(1.3	%)
Discontinued Operations
Income from discontinued operations, net of taxes		57			99			(42	)	NM
Loss from sale of discontinued operations, net of taxes		(2	)		—			(2	)	NM
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of taxes		55			99			(44	)	NM
Net Income	$	16,955		$	17,220		$	(265	)		(1.5	%)
Basic weighted average common share
Income from continuing operations	$	0.63		$	0.58		$	0.05			8.6	%
Income (loss) from discontinued operations		—			—			—			—
Net income	$	0.64		$	0.58		$	0.06			10.3	%
Diluted weighted average common share
Income from continuing operations	$	0.63		$	0.57		$	0.06			10.5	%
Income (loss) from discontinued operations		—			—			—			—
Net income	$	0.63		$	0.58		$	0.05			8.6	%
Weighted average shares used in calculations
Basic		26,652			29,602			(2,950	)		(10.0	%)
Diluted		26,900			29,903			(3,003	)		(10.0	%)
Dividends per common share	$	0.10		$	0.10			—			—
Other data:
EBITDA (1)	$	32,763		$	30,353		$	2,410			7.9	%
(1) The terms EBIT (earnings before interest and income taxes) and EBITDA (earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization) are non-GAAP financial measures that the management of Arbitron believes are useful to investors in evaluating the Company’s results. For a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP equivalent, see the EBIT and EBITDA Non-GAAP Reconciliation, along with related footnotes, below. Certain per share amounts may not total due to rounding. NM= Not meaningful.

Arbitron Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Income
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2008 and 2007
(In thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)


	Nine Months Ended
	September 30,									%
	2008			2007			Change			Change
Revenue	$	275,246		$	258,337		$	16,909			6.5	%
Costs and expenses
Cost of revenue		129,490			107,918			21,572			20.0	%
Selling, general and administrative		58,587			59,343			(756	)		(1.3	%)
Research and development		29,802			32,023			(2,221	)		(6.9	%)
Total costs and expenses		217,879			199,284			18,595			9.3	%
Operating income		57,367			59,053			(1,686	)		(2.9	%)
Equity in net loss of affiliate(s)		(973	)		(1,930	)		957			(49.6	%)
Earnings before interest and income taxes (2)		56,394			57,123			(729	)		(1.3	%)
Interest income		582			1,743			(1,161	)		(66.6	%)
Interest expense		1,524			286			1,238			432.9	%
Income from continuing operations before income taxes		55,452			58,580			(3,128	)		(5.3	%)
Income tax expense		21,615			22,211			(596	)		(2.7	%)
Income from continuing operations		33,837			36,369			(2,532	)		(7.0	%)
Discontinued Operations
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of taxes		(438	)		134			(572	)	NM
Gain from sale of discontinued operations, net of taxes		423			—			423		NM
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of taxes		(15	)		134			(149	)	NM
Net Income	$	33,822		$	36,503			(2,681	)		(7.3	%)
Basic weighted average common share
Income from continuing operations	$	1.24		$	1.22		$	0.02			1.6	%
Income (loss) from discontinued operations		—			—			—
Net income	$	1.24		$	1.23		$	0.01			0.8	%
Diluted weighted average common share
Income from continuing operations	$	1.23		$	1.21		$	0.02			1.7	%
Income (loss) from discontinued operations		—			—			—
Net income	$	1.23		$	1.21		$	0.02			1.7	%
Weighted average shares used in calculations
Basic		27,339			29,768			(2,429	)		(8.2	%)
Diluted		27,546			30,049			(2,503	)		(8.3	%)
Dividends per common share	$	0.30		$	0.30			—
Other data:
EBITDA (2)	$	69,053		$	65,807		$	3,246			4.9	%
(2) The terms EBIT (earnings before interest and income taxes) and EBITDA (earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization) are non-GAAP financial measures that the management of Arbitron believes are useful to investors in evaluating the Company’s results. For a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP equivalent, see the EBIT and EBITDA Non-GAAP Reconciliation, along with related footnotes, below. Certain per share amounts may not total due to rounding. NM=Not meaningful.

Arbitron Inc.
EBIT and EBITDA Non-GAAP Reconciliation
Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2008 and 2007
(In thousands)
(Unaudited)

(3) Arbitron’s management believes that presenting EBIT (earnings before interest and income taxes) and EBITDA (earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization), both non-GAAP financial measures, as supplemental information helps investors, analysts, and others, if they so choose, in understanding and evaluating Arbitron’s operating performance in some of the same manners that management does because EBIT and EBITDA exclude certain items that are not directly related to Arbitron’s core operating performance. Arbitron’s management references these non-GAAP financial measures in assessing current performance and making decisions about internal budgets, resource allocation and financial goals. EBIT is calculated by deducting net interest income from income from continuing operations and adding back income tax expense to income from continuing operations. EBITDA is calculated by deducting net interest income from income from continuing operations and adding back income tax expense, and depreciation and amortization to income from continuing operations. EBIT and EBITDA should not be considered substitutes either for income from continuing operations, as indicators of Arbitron’s operating performance, or for cash flow, as measures of Arbitron’s liquidity. In addition, because EBIT and EBITDA may not be calculated identically by all companies, the presentation here may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies.

Arbitron Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
September 30, 2008 and December 31, 2007
(In thousands)


	September 30,			December 31,
	2008			2007
	(Unaudited)			(Audited)
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	8,491		$	21,141
Trade receivables		34,658			34,171
Property and equipment, net		57,981			50,183
Goodwill, net		38,500			38,500
Other assets		22,783			29,002
Assets held for sale of discontinued operations		—			7,546
Total assets	$	162,413		$	180,543
Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity:
Deferred revenue	$	55,878		$	66,768
Other liabilities		45,867			48,924
Liabilities of discontinued operations		—			4,651
Long term debt (including current portion of $5,000 for 2007)		70,000			12,000
Stockholders’ (deficit) equity		(9,332	)		48,200
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	162,413		$	180,543


Delaware	1-1969	52-0278528
_____________________ (State or other jurisdiction	_____________ (Commission	______________ (I.R.S. Employer
of incorporation)	File Number)	Identification No.)

142 West 57th Street, New York, New York		10019-3300
_________________________________ (Address of principal executive offices)		___________ (Zip Code)


	Arbitron Inc.

October 21, 2008	By:	/s/ Timothy T. Smith

		Name: Timothy T. Smith
		Title: Executive Vice President & Chief Legal Officer, Legal & Business Affairs & Secretary


Exhibit No.		Description

99.1		Press Release of Arbitron Inc. dated October 21, 2008


Date of Report (Date of Earliest Event Reported):		October 21, 2008


Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:		212-887-1300