SATMODE to Enable Real-time Voting, Chat, Messaging, Enhanced and On-Demand Services Demonstrations of SATMODE Prototype at SES AMERICOM NAB Booth #C10934

April 15, 2004 – PRINCETON, NJ – It might very well win over American Idol fans as much as a perfect performance by their favorite aspiring pop star: the thought of never getting a busy signal when placing their all important weekly votes. SES GLOBAL (Luxembourg and Frankfurt Stock Exchanges: SESG), parent of SES AMERICOM, today announced it will unveil SATMODE, an innovative technology designed to support real-time voting, chatting, messaging, commerce, video-on-demand, and other exciting applications at the remote control fingertips of DBS consumers worldwide, at SES AMERICOM’s NAB booth in Las Vegas.

The affordable, two-way satellite channel platform, scheduled for availability next year, is the result of a global, cutting-edge consortium effort, led by SES GLOBAL, which could forever change and enhance the way DBS providers deliver services and how millions of consumers receive and interact with them.

Easily integrated into an existing or new, basic or DVR-powered, satellite TV set-top box, SATMODE is designed to enable broadcasters to deliver truly personalized, interactive and on-demand services directly to individual subscribers. Whether it’s in the hands of millions of voting American Idol fans, chatting friends and family members worldwide, or movie buffs ordering the latest release on-demand, the scalability of SATMODE would allow the transactions to be completed without delay.

“SES has long developed and supported technology innovations which enhance the services offered by our DBS customers around the Globe. SATMODE represents a significant innovation in the support of a new tier of interactive applications via DTH and places these services on par with the growing interactive services offered via cable,” said Rob Bednarek, Executive Vice President of Corporate Development at SES GLOBAL. “SATMODE opens the door to exciting, new revenue opportunities for broadcasters and direct-to-home satellite service providers, who will be able to greatly enhance a wide range of offerings with compelling features designed to increase consumer adoption and reduce churn.”

“The lack of an efficient return path has always limited true interactivity over satellite TV,” explained Ben Mendelson, President of the Interactive Television Alliance. “SATMODE will remove this major obstacle and will help accelerate wide deployment of interactive television. This is good news for the consumer, for the advertiser, and for the content creator.”

SES AMERICOM’s Senior Vice President of Domestic Satellite Services, Bryan McGuirk, believes that use of the SATMODE technology will foster exciting DTH developments in the American marketplace. “Consumers are ready for the convenience of truly interactive, on-demand services. SATMODE will enable broadcasters and direct-to-home service providers to deliver viable, scalable applications, such as enhanced TV and VOD, and could help tilt the advantage to satellite in the highly competitive multichannel delivery marketplace.”

SATMODE is currently in the latter stages of development, with field tests scheduled for next spring and commercial availability slated for sometime late next year. The demonstrations at the NAB conference in Las Vegas next week are the first public demonstrations of SATMODE in the world.

About SATMODE

SATMODE is a low-cost always on transmission technology, designed to enable broadcasters and DBS providers to personalize the television experience for their subscribers. Services based on this technology can be easily integrated into existing or new, basic and DVR-based set-top boxes, and will be offered with a turn-key option for service providers that prefer to leave the back office management to SATMODE. The SATMODE development consortium is led by SES GLOBAL, the world’s largest satellite services company and the parent of both U.S.-based consortium member SES AMERICOM and Luxembourg-based member SES ASTRA, the architect in the creation of SATMODE. The development kernel of the consortium is the SATMODE program, financed by the European Space Agency (ESA), SES GLOBAL entities, and by industry partners including: Newtec, a satellite solutions provider; NDS France, the MediaHighway middleware developer; NAGRA France, a conditional access developer; Thomson, a manufacturer of set-top boxes; ST Microelectronics, a chip manufacturer and SpaceBridge of Canada, a chip designer. For more information about SATMODE, visit www.ses-astra.com/products/broadcast/itv.

About SES AMERICOM

The largest supplier of satellite services in the U.S., SES AMERICOM, Inc. is recognized as a pioneer of global satellite communications services. Established in 1973 with its first satellite circuit for the U.S. Department of Defense, the company currently operates a fleet of 15 spacecraft in orbital positions predominantly providing service throughout the Americas. As a member of the SES GLOBAL family (Luxembourg and Frankfurt Stock Exchanges: SESG), AMERICOM is able to provide end-to-end telecommunications solutions to any region in the world. In 2001, the company established AMERICOM Government Services, a wholly owned subsidiary dedicated to providing satellite-based communications solutions to both civilian and defense agencies of the U.S. government. In 2003, SES AMERICOM formed WORLDSAT, a wholly owned subsidiary that markets capacity on five satellites covering Asia, and the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean regions, and connecting premier regional satellite fleets. With its combined operations, SES AMERICOM serves broadcasters, cable programmers, aeronautical and maritime communications integrators, Internet service providers, mobile communications networks, government agencies, educational institutions, carriers and secure global data networks with efficient communication and content distribution solutions. SES AMERICOM key customers include ABC Radio Networks, Antrix Corporation Ltd., AT&T Alascom, British Telecom, Connexion by Boeing, Deutsche Welle, Discovery, EchoStar, Fox, Gannett, TV Guide/Gemstar, Globecomm Systems, HBO, Hughes Network Systems, JSAT, Korea Telecom, MCI, NBC, The New York Times, NHK, PaxNet, PBS, PCCW, SCC, TELE Greenland, TV Europa, TimeWarner, Unitel Hellas, Viacom, and various agencies of the U.S. government.

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Contact:
              Monica Morgan
              SES AMERICOM
              +1-609-987-4143
               

              Paul Sims
              Sims Communications (for SES AMERICOM)
              +1- 678-576-6126