The Home Depot, Inc. is a Delaware corporation that was incorporated in 1978. The Company is the home improvement retailer in the United States. The Home Depot stores sell a wide assortment of building materials, home improvement and lawn and garden products and provide a number of services. In addition to The Home Depot stores, the Company has a retail store format that sells products and services primarily for home decorating and remodeling projects called EXPO Design Center and two retail store formats focused on professional customers called Home Depot Supply and The Home Depot Landscape Supply. The Company has two Home Depot Floor Stores located in Texas and Florida that primarily sell flooring products. In addition to its retail stores, the Company's business also includes Home Depot Supply. Home Depot Supply distributes products and sells installation services primarily to professional business contractors, businesses and municipalities and generally operates in the following three areas: Maintenance, Repair and Operations supplies maintenance, repair and operating products primarily to multi-family housing, hospitality and lodging facilities. Included under MRO are National Waterworks, Inc. and Apex Supply Company, Inc. National Waterworks provides a wide range of water and wastewater transmission products through 137 branches in 36 states. Apex Supply is a wholesale supplier of plumbing, HVAC, appliances and other related professional products with 25 locations in the Southeast. MRO also distributes its products through 20 distribution centers located in 14 states. Builder provides products and arranges installation services for production home builders through 37 locations in 14 states. Builder also includes Williams Bros. Lumber Company, LLC which is a supplier of lumber and building materials to home builders through 16 branches in Georgia. Professional Supply includes various brands, such as White Cap Construction and Contractors' Warehouse. White Cap Construction distributes specialty hardware, tools and materials to construction contractors through 103 branches in 23 states. EXPO Design Center stores are designed to be a complete home decorating and remodeling resource for middle- to upper- income D-I-F-M customers by offering interior design products for kitchens, baths, appliances and flooring, as well as products for lighting, decorating and storage and organization projects, beyond those available in The Home Depot stores. Home Depot Direct offers customers expanded merchandise selection and extra time convenience through website and catalog shopping, with direct product delivery to the home, office or job site. It also provides customers with valuable online information about home improvement topics and merchandise for sale in local The Home Depot stores. Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Homer TLC, Inc., the Company has registered or applied for registration, in a number of countries, for a variety of internet domain names, service marks and trademarks for use in its businesses, including The Home Depot®; Home Depot Direct; Hampton Bay® fans, lighting and accessories; Glacier Bay® toilets, sinks and faucets; Pegasus® faucets and bath accessories etc. At the end of fiscal 2005, The Home Depot employed approximately 345,000 associates.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. was incorporated in Delaware in October 1969, the businesses conducted by its founders began in 1945 when Sam M. Walton opened a franchise Ben Franklin variety store in Newport, Arkansas. Until 1962, the Company's founders business was devoted entirely to the operation of variety stores. In that year, the first Wal-Mart Discount City, which was a Discount Store, was opened. In fiscal 1984, the Company opened its first three SAM'S CLUBs, and in fiscal 1988, the Company opened its first Supercenter. In fiscal 1999, the Company opened its first Neighborhood Market. It operates retail stores in various formats around the world. The Company earns the trust of its customers every day by providing an assortment of quality merchandise and services at every day low prices while fostering a culture that rewards and embraces mutual respect, integrity and diversity. The Company's Wal-Mart Stores segment is the largest segment of its business. This segment consists of three different traditional retail formats, all of which operate in the United States, and Wal-Mart's online retail format, Walmart.com. The Company's traditional Wal-Mart Stores retail formats include Supercenters, which average approximately 187,000 square feet in size and offer a wide assortment of general merchandise and a full-line supermarket; Discount Stores, which average approximately 102,000 square feet in size and offer a wide assortment of general merchandise and a limited variety of food products; and Neighborhood Markets, which average approximately 42,000 square feet in size and offer a full-line supermarket and a limited assortment of general merchandise. The Company's SAM'S CLUB segment consists of membership warehouse clubs, which operate in the United States, and the segment's online retail format, samsclub.com. The Company's focus for SAM'S CLUB is to provide exceptional value on brand-name merchandise at members only prices for both business and personal use. The Company's SAM'S CLUBs average approximately 129,000 square feet in size. At January 31, 2006, the Company's International segment consisted of retail operations in nine countries and Puerto Rico. The International segment includes several different formats of retail stores and restaurants, including Discount Stores, Supercenters and SAM'S CLUBs that operate outside the United States. At January 31, 2006, the Company operated 1,209 Discount Stores, 1,980 Supercenters, 567 SAM'S CLUBs and 100 Neighborhood Markets in the United States. Internationally, at January 31, 2006, the Company operated units in Argentina- 11, Brazil- 295, Canada- 278, Germany- 88, Japan- 398, Mexico- 774, Puerto Rico- 54, South Korea- 16 and the United Kingdom- 315. The Company also operated 56 stores through joint ventures in China at January 31, 2006. As of January 31, 2006, the Company employed approximately 1.8 million employees worldwide.

BBank of America Corporation was incorporated in 1998 as a part of the merger of BankAmerica Corporation with NationsBank Corporation. It is a Delaware corporation, a bank holding company and a financial holding company under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Through its banking subsidiaries and various nonbanking subsidiaries, the Corporation provides a diversified range of banking and nonbanking financial services and products, primarily throughout the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, the Midwest, the Southeast, the Southwest, the Northwest and the West regions of the United States and in selected international markets. The Corporation provides a range of banking and nonbanking financial services and products domestically and internationally through four business segments: Global Consumer and Small Business Banking, Global Business and Financial Services, Global Capital Markets and Investment Banking, and Global Wealth and Investment Management. It serves a numbers of consumers and small business relationships utilizing its network of 5,873 banking centers, 16,785 domestic branded ATMs, and telephone and Internet channels. Within Global Consumer and Small Business Banking, the Company's product groups are Card Services, Consumer Real Estate and Consumer Deposit and Debit Products. Global Business and Financial Services serves mid-sized domestic and international business clients providing financial services, specialized industry expertise and local delivery through a global team of client managers and a variety of businesses including Global Treasury Services, Middle Market Banking, Business Banking, Commercial Real Estate Banking, Leasing, Business Capital, and Dealer Financial Services. The Company intends to align its resources with sectors where it can deliver value-added financial solutions to its issuer and investor clients. This segment provides a range of financial services to large corporate domestic and international clients, financial institutions, and government entities. It also provides resources and capabilities to its investor clients providing them with financial solutions as well as allowing greater access to market liquidity and risk management capabilities through various distribution channels. Clients are supported through offices in 27 countries that are divided into three distinct geographic regions: U.S. and Canada; Asia; and Europe, Middle East and Africa. Global Wealth and Investment Management Segment provides tailored investment services to individual and institutional clients in various stages and economic cycles. The Company's clients are offered specific products and services based on their needs through major businesses such as: The Private Bank, Family Wealth Advisors, Columbia Management Group and Other Services. The Corporation has the bank deposit market share position in California, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey and Washington. As of December 31, 2005, there were 176,638 full-time equivalent employees within the Corporation and its subsidiaries.

Manor Care, Inc., also known as Manor Care and HCR Manor Care, provides a range of health care services, including skilled nursing care, assisted living, subacute medical and rehabilitation care, hospice care, home health care and rehabilitation therapy. The most important portion of the business relates to long-term care, including skilled nursing care and assisted living. The Company's other segment is hospice and home health care. The Company is an owner and operator of long-term care centers in the United States, with the majority of facilities operating under the respected Heartland, ManorCare and Arden Courts names. The Company's facility uses interdisciplinary teams of experienced medical professionals to provide services prescribed by physicians. These teams include registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants, who provide individualized comprehensive nursing care around the clock. The Company has a number of stand-alone assisted living centers as well as units within its skilled nursing centers dedicated to providing personal care services and assistance with general activities of daily living such as dressing, bathing, meal preparation and medication management. The Company uses a comprehensive resident assessment to help determine the appropriate package of services desired or required by each resident. The Company's assisted living staff encourages residents to socialize and participate in a wide spectrum of activities. The Company provides medical and rehabilitation programs for patients recovering from major surgery; severe injury; or serious cardiovascular, respiratory, infectious, endocrine or neurological illnesses. The Company provides innovative services and facilities to care for Alzheimer's patients in early, middle and advanced stages of the disease. The Company's hospice and home health business specializes in all levels of hospice care, home health and rehabilitation therapy with 103 offices in 24 states. Hospice services focus on the physical, spiritual and psychosocial needs of individuals facing a life-limiting illness. Home health care is designed to assist those who wish to stay at home or in assisted living residences but still require some degree of medical care or assistance with daily activities. For skilled care, the Company's registered and licensed practical nurses and therapy professionals provides services such as wound care and dressing changes; infusion therapy; cardiac rehabilitation; and physical, occupational and speech therapies. In addition, home health aides assists with daily activities such as personal hygiene, assistance with walking and getting in and out of bed, medication management, light housekeeping and generally maintaining a safe environment. The Company also provides rehabilitation therapy in its outpatient therapy clinics and at work sites, schools, hospitals and other health care settings. Health care is an area of regulatory oversight and frequent regulatory change. The federal government and the states in which the Company operates regulate various aspects of the business. As of December 31, 2005, the Company had approximately 58,000 full- and part-time employees.

Sony Corporation, the ultimate parent Company of Sony, was established in Japan in May 1946 as Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha, a joint stock Company under the Japanese Commercial Code. In January 1958, it changed its name to Sony Kabushiki Kaisha. Sony Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries are engaged in the developing, designing, manufacturing, and selling of various kinds of electronic equipment, instruments, and devices for consumer and industrial markets. Sony develops, produces, manufactures, and markets home- use game consoles and software. The Company's principal manufacturing facilities are located in Japan, the United States of America, Europe, and Asia. It has many segments such as Electronic Segment- Its electronic products are marketed throughout the world and game products are marketed mainly in Japan, the United States of America and Europe by sales subsidiaries and unaffiliated local distributors as well as direct sales via the Internet. It is engaged in the development, production, manufacture, marketing, distribution and broadcasting of image- based software, including film, video and television product. Games Segments- It develops, produces, markets and distributes PlayStation®, PS onetm, PlayStation®2 and PSPtm hardware and related software in Japan. Pictures Segments- SPE, with global operations in 72 countries, distribution of its internally produced motion pictures, includes rights for theatrical exhibition, videocassette, DVD and Blu- ray distribution, pay and free television exhibition and other markets. Financial services- It is engaged in various financial service businesses including insurance operations through a Japanese life insurance subsidiary and a non- life insurance subsidiary, banking operations through a Japanese internet- based banking subsidiary and leasing and credit financing operations in Japan. The Company is also engaged in the development, production, manufacture, and distribution of recorded music, network service business including Internet- related businesses, an animation production and marketing business, an imported general merchandise retail business and an advertising agency business in Japan. SMEJ became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation. SMEJ produces, markets, and distributes CDs, MDs, DVDs, and pre- recorded audio and video software. The Company conducts insurance operations primarily through Sony Life, a Japanese life insurance Company, and Sony Assurance, a Japanese non- life insurance Company, both wholly owned by SFH. The Company also operates an Internet- based banking business in Japan through Sony Bank, which is an 88 percent- owned subsidiary of SFH. Aside from SFH, The Company is also engaged in a leasing and credit financing business in Japan through Sony Finance International Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation. Sony's electronics products and services are marketed throughout the world under the trademark 'Sony', which has been registered in 204 countries and territories. As of March 31, 2006, the Company had approximately employees

Sprint Nextel Corporation, incorporated in 1938 under the laws of Kansas, is a holding company, with its operations primarily conducted by its subsidiaries. The Company is a global communications company offering a suite of wireless and wireline communications products and services that are designed to meet the needs of its targeted customer groups: individuals, and business and government customers. Its operations are divided into three lines of business segments, wireless, long distance and local. Wireless segment offers a wide array of wireless mobile telephone and wireless data transmission services on networks that utilize Code Division Multiple Access and Integrated Digital Enhanced Network technologies. Long Distance segment provides a suite of wireline voice and data communications services targeted to domestic business and residential customers, multinational corporations and other communications companies. Local segment provides regulated incumbent local phone services in local service territories in 18 states. The Company and its subsidiaries offers an array of wireless mobile telephone and wireless data transmission services on networks that utilize code division multiple access and integrated Digital Enhanced Network, technologies. The Company markets wireless services provided on CDMA network under the Sprint brand. The Company is deploying high-speed evolution data optimized technology, which increases by up to 10 time's average mobile-device data speeds, across CDMA network. The services supported by this technology, marketed as PowerVisionSM, give consumer and business subscribers with EV-DO-enabled devices access to numerous sophisticated data messaging, imaging, entertainment and location-based applications. The Company also provides regulated local exchange telephone services to approximately 7.4 million access lines in its local service territories in 18 states. The Company is one of the providers of long distance services and carriers of Internet traffic. Sprint Nextel operates an all-digital long distance and Tier 1, Internet Protocol, network, which provides a suite of wireline communications services targeted to domestic business and residential customers, multinational corporations and other communications companies. These services include domestic and international voice, data communications using various protocols such as multi-protocol label switching technologies, IP, asynchronous transfer mode and frame relay, and managed network services. The Company owns numerous patents, patent applications, service marks and trademarks in the United States and other countries. Sprint, PowerVision, Sprint PCS, Nextel and Boost Mobile are the Company's registered trademarks. As of December 31, 2005, the Company had approximately 79,900 active employees

Verizon Communications was formerly known as Bell Atlantic Corporation, which was incorporated in 1983 under the laws of the State of Delaware. It began doing business as Verizon Communications on June 30, 2000, when Bell Atlantic Corporation merged with GTE Corporation. The Company is a provider of communications services. Verizon's domestic wireline telecommunications business provides local telephone services, including broadband, in 28 states and Washington, D.C. and nationwide long-distance and other communications products and services. Verizon's domestic wireless business, operating as Verizon Wireless, provides wireless voice and data products and services across the United States using wireless networks. Information Services operates directory publishing businesses and provides electronic commerce services. Verizon's International segment includes wireline and wireless communications operations and investments in the Americas and Europe. The Company has four reportable segments, which it operates and manages as strategic business units and organize by products and services. The Company's segments and their principal activities are: Domestic Telecom, Domestic Wireless, Information Services and International. Domestic Telecom provides local telephone services, including voice, DSL, data transport, enhanced and custom calling features, network access, directory assistance, private lines and public telephones in 28 states and Washington, D.C. This segment also provides long distance services, customer premises equipment distribution, video services, data solutions and systems integration, billing and collections and inventory management services. Domestic wireless products and services include wireless voice and data services and equipment sales across the United States. Information Services' multi-platform business comprises yellow and white pages directories, SuperPages.com, its online directory and search services, and SuperPages, On the Go, its directory and information services on wireless telephones. This segment's operations are principally in the United States. International wireline and wireless communications operations and investments in the Americas and Europe. The Company has organized its Domestic Telecom segment into four marketing units operating across its telephone subsidiaries. The units focus on specific markets. The Company is not dependent on any single customer. Its telephone operations remain responsible within their respective service areas for the provision of telephone services, financial performance and regulatory matters. Verizon Wireless is the wireless communications provider in the United States in terms of profitability, as measured by operating income. The Company produces Verizon yellow and white pages directories, as well as the Internet's most advanced online directory, SuperPages.com. Information Services provides sales, publishing and other related services for approximately 1,726 directory titles in 44 states, Washington, D.C., four countries and a Commonwealth outside the United States. This includes over 1,200 Verizon directory titles with a circulation of approximately 121 million copies in the U.S. and 8 million copies internationally. The Company's International segment includes international wireline and wireless communications operations and investments in the Americas and Europe. The Company's services are subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission with respect to interstate telecommunications services and other matters for which the FCC has jurisdiction under the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. As of December 31, 2005, Verizon and its subsidiaries had approximately 217,000 employees.

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