EchoStar Leads Digital Broadcast Satellite Market With Commitment to Interactive Television

Business Wire, July 19, 2000

Business Editors & High-Tech Writers

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 19, 2000

By End of 2000, More than 1 Million U.S. Homes Will Be Capable of Enjoying Compelling Interactive Television Services Delivered Through

OpenTV-Powered EchoStar Satellite TV Receivers

EchoStar Communications Corp. (Nasdaq:DISH) (Nasdaq:DISHP), and OpenTV Corp. (Nasdaq:OPTV) (AEX:OPTV), the leading provider of software that enables interactive television (ITV), today announced that more than 1 million EchoStar set-top boxes will be enabled with OpenTV interactive television software by the end of 2000.

This news, highlighted during a news conference at the annual Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association's show in Las Vegas, heralds the upcoming arrival of interactive television services to consumers nationwide delivered jointly by EchoStar's DISH Network(TM) and OpenTV. Soon, DISH Network customers nationwide will have access to a spectrum of interactive television services such as instant news, sports and games -- all through a simple click of their television remote control.

Having successfully launched DISH Instant Weather and its new Electronic Program Guide on May 1, EchoStar continues to lead the U.S. digital broadcast satellite market into the future through its use of OpenTV's software platform to enable the latest in interactive television applications. EchoStar's commitment this year to OpenTV-enabled ITV services demonstrates OpenTV's rapid momentum as the worldwide ITV software leader with more than 7.8 million set-top boxes currently deployed across the globe.

DISH Network will soon launch new and innovative interactive TV programs to make its viewers' experiences more compelling than that offered by any other service provider. By partnering with OpenTV, utilizing the OpenTV operating platform and OpenTV's expertise in creating ITV applications, EchoStar aims to provide the best in interactive television programming for DISH Network customers. Enhancing the offering are EchoStar's and OpenTV's ongoing partnerships with leading content providers.

"This is a major step for EchoStar towards delivering the world's most complete interactive television experience," said Charlie Ergen, CEO and chairman of EchoStar. "OpenTV's proven technology and unparalleled experience have helped broadcast networks worldwide navigate and thrive in the new world of interactive television. We look forward to a multifaceted and long-lasting relationship with OpenTV to provide our millions of subscribers with the most dynamic and meaningful television services available."

"EchoStar is a very significant and growing player in the U.S. television market," said Jan Steenkamp, president and CEO of OpenTV. "This deployment announcement will make OpenTV the most widely deployed interactive television service in the United States, as well as in the world.

"OpenTV is increasingly becoming the operating system of choice for the leading satellite, cable and terrestrial operators around the world who appreciate the dramatic revenue opportunities and the viewer loyalty that interactive television can deliver. Viewers want a more compelling television experience which DISH Network can now provide using OpenTV's software."

OpenTV-enabled interactive television services will be available via the following EchoStar satellite receivers: 3800, 3900, 4700 and 4900 series models, as well as an upcoming hard drive set-top box satellite receiver. Existing EchoStar 3800 and 4700 set-top boxes -- available since October 1998 -- are also capable of receiving new and updated OpenTV interactive television services through automatic and free software flash-downloads.

About EchoStar

DISH Network is EchoStar's state-of-the-art DBS system with the capacity to offer customers 500 channels of digital video and CD-quality audio programming as well as fully MPEG-2/DVB compliant hardware and installation. DISH Network, a trademark of EchoStar Communications Corp., currently serves more than 4 million customers nationwide.

DISH Network was ranked No. 1 in customer satisfaction among satellite/cable TV subscribers by J.D. Power and Associates in 1999. EchoStar is included in the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX), which contains the largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq Stock Market. For more information, contact 800/333-DISH (3474) or visit www.dishnetwork.com.

About OpenTV

OpenTV is the leading worldwide provider of software, services and applications that enable digital interactive television (ITV). OpenTV provides a complete end-to-end solution for the development and delivery of interactive services via digital satellite, cable and terrestrial broadcast. OpenTV set-top box software has been shipped with or installed in more than 7.8 million digital set-top boxes worldwide.

OpenTV software solutions have been selected by 30 television network operators in over 50 countries, including British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) in the United Kingdom; TPS and Noos in France; PrimaCom in Germany; Via Digital in Spain; Galaxy Latin America, the exclusive provider of DIRECTV(TM) in Latin America; and EchoStar's DISH Network(TM) in the United States.