PROTON WINS READER'S DIGEST TRUSTED BRAND AWARD

Malaysian consumers have named PROTON their most trusted and favourite brand in the prestigious 2006 Reader's Digest Trusted Brands Awards (car category).

The award, presented today at a ceremony at the Hilton Kuala Lumpur, was based on a premier survey conducted by internationally-renowned Reader's Digest magazine which measured a broad spectrum of consumers' brand preferences in 42 different product categories.

This is the second consecutive year PROTON has received an award from Reader's Digest. Last year, it won the Gold Award in the annual Reader's Digest SuperBrands Survey that asked consumers to name the most outstanding brands in Asia.

"This is indeed an honour. Today's consumers are growing more conscious and look to brands they can trust, brands that are reliable, and brands that are in a position to offer them the best ownership experience. This is precisely why PROTON is committed to building even more appealing products aimed at delivering better customer satisfaction," said PROTON Managing Director Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir who received the award on behalf of the company.

"Moving forward we are intensifying efforts to become an even more revered, trusted and competitive global player, and we look forward to a brighter future, one that will see a new era of Proton cars built strictly with the highest quality, being introduced at the right time and being sold at the right price."

PROTON he added, is also focused on enhancing its sales and after sales services as well as activities aimed at delivering on total customer satisfaction. In April, the company also launched a Quality Campaign aimed at enhancing its product and brand, in line with its goal to introduce cars that are competitive in terms of all critical dimensions; pricing, safety and design, as well as to have Proton cars acknowledged and more widely accepted internationally.

"We thank our customers for the trust, belief and the confidence they have put in the brand and the product. Your trust makes us even more committed, inspired and driven to deliver a new and even more exciting generation of vehicles designed not only for reliability and durability, but to cater to the needs, requirements and aspirations of car buyers in all market segments," said Syed Zainal Abidin.

Meanwhile, Simon Cholmeley, regional advertising director for Reader's Digest Asia, said the winning brands are truly top-of-mind brands when it comes to having consumers' vote of confidence.