DIRECTV Names 39 New Local Channel Markets

Local Channels from DIRECTV to be Available in 100 Markets By Year End; More Markets May Be Added

El Segundo, CA Mar 19, 2003 DIRECTV, Inc., provider of the nation's leading digital multichannel television service, announced today 39 new markets where it plans to launch local channels by year end, bringing the total number of markets it will serve with local channels to 100, representing 84 percent of U.S. television households. DIRECTV also said it is evaluating plans to add more markets beyond the additional 39 markets by year end or early 2004. DIRECTV today offers local channels in 52 markets.

"We expect that 'cable service switch-out' will become the favorite pastime for consumers in many more cities and towns across America once local channels are available from DIRECTV," said Roxanne Austin, president and COO of DIRECTV, Inc. "The expansion of DIRECTV local channel markets this year is a linchpin of our strategy to be more competitive and continue to grow profitably at the expense of cable. The announcement of these new markets is a clear signal to cable providers that we're not conceding TV viewers in the medium size communities."

Earlier this year DIRECTV announced it would launch local broadcast channel service in up to 50 additional markets by year end, including 10 markets by mid-year, beginning with Richmond, Va., which launched on Jan. 16. Other markets scheduled for launch by mid-year include Colorado Springs, Colo.; Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; Roanoke, Va.; Green Bay, Wis.; Tucson, Ariz.; Shreveport, La.; Jackson, Miss.; Louisville, Ky.; and Des Moines, Iowa.

The next scheduled 39 local channel markets are:

Albany-Schenectady-Troy, N.Y.

Albuquerque-Santa Fe, N.M.

Bakersfield, Calif.

Baton Rouge, La.

Charleston-Huntington, W. Va.

Chico-Redding, Calif.

Columbus-Tupelo-West Point, Miss.

Columbia, S.C.

Corpus Christi, Texas

Dayton, Ohio

Duluth, Minn., Superior, Wis.

El Paso, Texas

Flint-Saginaw-Bay City, Mich.

Fort Myers-Naples, Fla.

Fresno-Visalia, Calif.

Harlingen-Weslaco-Brownsville-McAllen, Texas

Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York, Pa.

Lafayette, La.

Lansing, Mich.

Lexington, Ky.

Little Rock-Pine Bluff, Ark.

Madison, Wis.

Medford-Klamath Falls, Ore.

Mobile, Ala., Pensacola, (Fort Walton Beach), Fla.

Monterey-Salinas, Calif.

Omaha, Neb.

Paducah, Ky., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Portland-Auburn, Maine

Reno, Nev.

Rochester, N.Y.

Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Savannah, Ga.

South Bend-Elkhart, Ind.

Spokane, Wash.

Tallahassee, Fla., Thomasville, Ga.

Tulsa, Okla.

Tyler-Longview, Texas

Wilmington, N.C.

Yakima-Pasco-Richland-Kennewick, Wash.

Advanced digital compression technology and DIRECTV 7S, a spot beam satellite scheduled to launch in the fourth quarter of this year, will provide the capacity for the majority of the 39 markets. As with all existing local channel markets, DIRECTV will deliver all local broadcast channels in the new markets to a single, small satellite dish. Customers in these new markets will require the use of a DIRECTV® Multi-Satellite System, which includes a single multi-satellite dish.

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