Dish Network in the News

CBS and Dish Network To Offer HDTV Programming via Satellite TV

DISH Network to Offer Primetime Hit CBS Television Shows, Sporting Events in High Definition

NEW YORK, and LITTLETON, Colo., July 12 /PRNewswire/ -- EchoStar Communications Corporation and CBS Television will offer eligible DISH Network customers access to CBS's extensive schedule of high definition digital television programming, it was announced today by Michael Schwimmer, Vice President of Programming for EchoStar, and Martin D. Franks, Executive Vice President, CBS Television. Together, DISH Network and CBS will provide the highest resolution format of digital television with the best picture clarity available to satellite TV customers across the nation.

DISH Network will launch east and west coast CBS HDTV feeds by the start of the 2001-2002 television season for DISH Network customers and will demonstrate the CBS HDTV feeds at the annual 2001 Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association convention in Nashville, Tenn., Aug. 2-4. Depending on where they live, DISH Network customers will be offered one of the CBS HDTV feeds as long as they meet one of the following eligibility requirements:

* They live within a market served by a CBS Owned and Operated Television station, which includes: New York; Los Angeles; Chicago; Philadelphia; San Francisco; Boston; Detroit; Dallas; Miami; Minneapolis; Denver; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Baltimore; Salt Lake City; Austin, Texas; and Green Bay, Wis. CBS has granted DISH Network blanket authority to deliver the HDTV feeds into the markets that are served by CBS O&Os, which cover nearly 35 percent of U.S. TV households. DISH Network customers subscribing to a local channel package from one of these cities will receive the CBS HD signal at no additional charge.

* They live in a "white area," which is defined by the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act as an area unserved by a local CBS Television Network analog signal delivered over the air. Eligible DISH Network customers in a white area subscribing to a local channel package will also receive the CBS HDTV signal at no additional charge.

* They are "served" by a CBS affiliate that is not owned and operated by CBS but elects to allow the satellite-delivered HDTV feed into their coverage area. DISH Network customers subscribing to a local channel package from one of these cities can receive the CBS HD signal at no additional charge or for a nominal monthly fee in cities where local channels are not offered by DISH Network.

"By adding DISH Network to our industry-leading high definition partnership, CBS is once again demonstrating its determination to bring the amazing HD viewing experience to more of our audience and to do everything we can to advance the transition to digital broadcasting," stated Franks.

"We're pleased that CBS is taking a leading role among network broadcasters in helping DISH Network distribute the most HDTV programming choices to its customers," said Schwimmer. "With this partnership, we are speeding the nation's adoption of digital and high definition television. We look forward to working with CBS and its affiliates to bring CBS HDTV to the growing number of consumers wanting the best that television can offer."

For the last two years, CBS has been broadcasting the majority of its primetime programming in HDTV. Currently, CBS is broadcasting 17 out of 18 (94%) of its primetime dramas and comedies in high definition.

CBS's commitment to high definition extends beyond primetime to unprecedented HDTV coverage of major sporting events by CBS Sports. At the beginning of the 2000/2001 season, CBS Sports served up three days of U.S. Open Tennis coverage. This was just the beginning of another exciting season of premier high definition sports programming, including the Thanksgiving Day NFL game, four post-season AFC/NFL playoff games, The Super Bowl, the Hawaiian Golf Open and, for the second consecutive year, the NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL tournament "Final Four" and four days of The Masters® golf.

In late June, CBS opened a new daypart for HDTV with the addition of the highest rated daytime drama, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, to its high definition program schedule. As a result, CBS, on average, will be offering 24 hours per week of compelling HDTV programming. Forty of CBS's owned and affiliated stations currently broadcast in digital television, covering more than 50 percent of the nation. By the end of 2001, CBS is projecting 75 stations will be on the air with HDTV, covering potentially 68 million homes.

DISH Network and CBS will use the highest form of HDTV, which contains 1080 lines of resolution with a data rate of up to 19.37 million bits per second. This will ensure that the satellite TV signals have the same high quality as the land-based high definition broadcasts from the CBS Television Network. This form of HDTV contains over 2 million individual picture elements that create pictures that are over six times sharper than regular television. This improved resolution, coupled with the cinema like wide-screen images and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, will take television viewing to a new plateau.

With the addition of CBS, DISH Network now offers four HDTV channels delivered via satellite TV, providing the most HD programming choices on a nationwide basis from any pay TV provider.