HOUSTON, July 9 /PRNewswire/ --

- Accretive Transaction Strengthens ION's Portfolio of Land Seismic 
Imaging Systems

- Conference Call Scheduled for Wednesday, July 9th at 9 AM EDT

ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE: IO) announced today that it has signed
a definitive agreement to acquire all of the outstanding shares of ARAM
Systems Ltd., a Canadian-based provider of cable-based land seismic recording
systems, and its affiliate company, Canadian Seismic Rentals, Inc. Of the
gross purchase price of CDN $350 million, US $275 million will be paid in
cash while the remainder will be paid in ION common stock. The transaction is
expected to be earnings neutral for the remainder of 2008 and accretive to
ION's consolidated pro-forma earnings in 2009.

Commenting on the acquisition, Bob Peebler, ION's President and CEO,
stated, "Over the last several years, ARAM has demonstrated a clear ability
to gain presence in an expanding global market for cable-based land seismic
recording systems. ARAM's reputation for engineering and supply chain
excellence, product reliability, and value-adding customer support have
contributed to rapidly growing revenues that now exceed $100 million per
year. From a starting position as a low cost, niche player in the land
systems business, ARAM has firmly established itself as a major player in the
analog segment of the market. Their ARIES recording systems, known for
reliability and ease of use, have been embraced by contractors. The pending
introduction of ARIES II will allow ARAM to compete aggressively for high
channel-count analog business and should extend the company's track record of
delivering high quality, low cost systems. We believe the scope and scale of
the combined entity will offer our customers expanded and accelerated access
to a broader range of instrumentation options and enable our consolidated
land businesses to grow more rapidly and deliver bottom-line results more
effectively than either company could on its own. In addition to synergies
associated with the consolidation of product roadmaps and technical and
operations personnel, we have a significant opportunity to leverage each
other's customer base for cross-selling and up-selling as well as to
incorporate ARAM's proven ability to design and manufacture high-margin land
imaging systems within ION."

Chris Chamberlain, President and CEO of ARAM, added, "Under Bob Peebler's
leadership, ION has formulated and begun to realize a vision for a new kind
of technology-focused seismic company. By introducing products such as
VectorSeis(R) and FireFly(R) and by acquiring innovation leaders like GX
Technology and Concept Systems, ION has assembled a portfolio of land imaging
hardware, software, and imaging services that is capturing the imaginations
of both contractors and E&P companies. We believe ARAM's products and people
can play a key role in helping ION to achieve its vision more quickly and
with improved financial results."

Don Chamberlain, founder and Chairman of ARAM, stated, "While cableless
systems like FireFly offer a compelling alternative to the mainstream
cable-based systems that ARAM has focused on, the progression from a
cable-based to a cableless world will take some time. During this multi-year
transition, ARAM can provide ION with engineering and supply chain
capabilities and field support and customer-relationship networks that will
enable the combined entity to continue to grow in what is expected to be an
expanding market for land seismic instruments. While moving from private
ownership to being part of a public company isn't a decision to be taken
lightly, I am convinced that becoming a part of the ION family of companies
is the right thing to do for our employees and our customers. One only has to
look at the success that both GXT and Concept Systems have had within ION as
the proof cases."

Peebler concluded by saying, "This transaction enables our combined land
imaging systems group to offer our contractor customers the right tools for
their jobs, including cableless FireFly and a choice of cable-based systems
available in either analog geophone or digital, full-wave VectorSeis sensor
configurations. More than 70% of the world's future hydrocarbons will be
provided by onshore reservoirs that need to be discovered or appraised with
the latest seismic technologies. By combining forces, ION and ARAM stand
ready to outfit our customers with the most advanced, most comprehensive
toolkit for this endeavor."

The US $275 million cash portion of the transaction is expected to be
sourced by a term loan issued in conjunction with ION's existing line of
credit and from the proceeds of long-term debt, terms and conditions of which
have yet to be finalized. Including anticipated interest expenses, the
issuance of ION common stock to finance the non-cash portion of the
transaction, and synergies, but excluding one-time charges, the acquisition
is projected to be earnings-neutral for the remainder of 2008 and accretive
on a consolidated pro-forma basis in 2009. Evercore Group L.L.C. served as
ION's financial advisor, while Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. L.L.C advised
ARAM.

At the close of business on July 7th 2008, the exchange rate reported by
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the International Monetary Fund was
CAD 1.02 : USD 1.00.

For more information about the transaction, visit:
http://www.iongeo.com/ARAM-transactionsummary. A conference call to
discuss the ARAM transaction has been scheduled for Wednesday, July 9, 2008
at 9 AM EDT (8 AM CDT). The conference call, hosted by ION President and CEO
Bob Peebler and ION CFO Brian Hanson, can be accessed as follows:

Via Webcast:
    -- Visit ION's investor relations web page at http://www.iongeo.com 
    -- Live: Click on the link for "ION Geophysical Investor Conference Call"
    -- Replay: A replay via webcast will be available on the Company's website 
       approximately one hour after the call's completion

    Via Telephone within the U.S.:
    -- Live: Dial toll free +1-800-240-4186
    -- Replay: A telephone replay will be available through Thursday, July 17, 
       by dialing toll free +1-800-405-2236, passcode: 11116935#

    Via Telephone outside the U.S.:
    -- Live: Dial +1-303-262-2130
    -- Replay: A telephone replay will be available through Thursday, July 17, 
       by dialing +1-303-590-3000, passcode: 11116935#



About ION

ION is a leading provider of geophysical technology, services, and
solutions for the global oil & gas industry. ION's offerings allow E&P
operators to obtain higher resolution images of the subsurface to reduce the
risk of exploration and reservoir development, and enable seismic contractors
to acquire geophysical data more efficiently. Additional information about
ION is available at http://www.iongeo.com.

The information included herein contains forward-looking statements
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may vary
fundamentally from those described in these forward-looking statements. All
forward-looking statements reflect numerous assumptions and involve a number
of risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include risk
factors that are disclosed by ION from time to time in its filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.

Contacts
    ION (Financial community)
    Chief Financial Officer
    Brian Hanson, +1-281-879-3672

    ION (Media affairs)
    Senior Manager - Corporate Marketing
    Jenny Salinas, +1-713-366-7286
    jenny.salinas@iongeo.com



Web site: http://www.iongeo.com