SKY NEWS AVAILABLE TO ANOTHER 3 MILLION HOMES IN EUROPE VIA ASTRA AT 19.2° EAST (DIGITAL UNENCRYPTED)

Sky News - Europe's first 24-hour news service - will be made available to a further 3 million homes in Europe by launching in digital unencrypted on the ASTRA satellite system at 19.2° East. The move underlines BSkyB's commitment to Sky News, which has been providing up-to-the minute global news coverage and expert impartial analysis since 1989, and adds another renowned news channel to the unencrypted digital program line-up available to viewers across Europe via ASTRA 19.2° East.

To this effect, BSkyB has completed a contract with SES for additional transmission capacity on ASTRA 1G at 19.2° E in digital. The contract runs at least until the end of 2002.

Audrey Iwanczyszyn, Head of Sky Television International Cable Distribution, stresses: "The extra capacity reflects BSkyB's commitment to news audiences in the growing European digital market."

Says Yves Elsen, Commercial and Marketing Director of SES: "Sky News further enhances the in-the-clear digital line-up on the ASTRA satellite system at 19.2° East. On top of Europe's leading Pay-TV offers ASTRA currently broadcasts 54 unencrypted digital TV stations and 96 radio programs in 11 languages to the steadily growing audience of households equipped for the reception of digital ASTRA signals."

The move to make Sky News available to digital receivers outside the UK via 19.2° East follows the successful launch of SkyDigital in October 1998 on ASTRA 28.2° East. SkyDigital has attracted more than 350,000 subscribers in the UK and Eire, which to date represents the fastest take-up of digital television anywhere in the world.

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About Sky News:

Sky News is Europe's first 24-hour news service and is available to 76 million people in 42 countries, from Europe to Asia, the Middle East to Australia. As a 24-hour dedicated news service, Sky News brings immediate coverage of breaking stories from around the world, as well as programming on politics, business, arts and entertainment, science technology, sport, travel and weather. With bureaux across the globe, extensive technical resources and further alliances with Reuters, Fox News, CBS and others, Sky News is firmly established as one of the most dynamic voices in current affairs broadcasting.

About SES:

Société Européenne des Satellites S.A. (SES) is the operator of ASTRA, Europe's leading direct-to-home Satellite System. ASTRA transmits 377 television channels and 314 radio channels in analogue and digital to an audience of 74.5 million homes in Europe. SES is also a major shareholder in ASIASAT (34.13% since January 15, 1999), the prime Asian satellite operator providing broadcast and telecommunications services to 53 countries in the Asian/Pacific region. The combined footprints of ASTRA and ASIASAT cover three quarters of the world's population. SES is listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange under the form of Fiduciary Depositary Receipts (symbol: SES) and quoted on SEAQ International in London and XETRA.