THOMAS & BETTS ACQUIRES CABLE TV COMPONENT MANUFACTURING

Thomas & Betts Corporation (NYSE:TNB), Memphis Tenn., has acquired the manufacturing assets of the trap and filter business of Pico Products, Inc., of Lakeview Terrace, Calif., for an undisclosed cash amount.

"The purchase of the Pico manufacturing assets supports the growth strategy of Thomas & Betts by expanding the breadth of CATV products we can offer to CATV system operators and distributors servicing that industry," said Roy Burton, president of Thomas & Betts' Electronics/OEM Group. "Trap and filter products are a perfect complement to the hard line connectors, drop wire connectors and pole attachment hardware that we currently sell under the LRC(R), Diamond(TM) and Diamond-Sachs(TM) brand names.

In a cable television (CATV) installation, trap products are used to cost effectively secure video signals delivered through CATV networks and to allow operators to collect revenue for premium services. Filter products are used to increase the quality of video, voice and data services delivered through the CATV network.

Thomas & Betts is a leading producer of connectors and components for worldwide electrical and electronics markets. Visit Thomas & Betts on the World Wide Web at www.tnb.com.

For more information, call 901/252-5962.