New York City

At the Museum of Television and Radio, New York, XM Satellite Radio debuted all 100 channels of programming that will be available on its new subscription, nationwide radio service. Also debuted was the new advertising campaign which was developed by Chiat-Day. Five receivers were displayed, all receiving signals off the air.

Leading off the festivities was XM Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Steve Cook. He introduced CEO, Hugh Panero who discussed the events leading to this point, including the launch of the satellites, the construction of their studios and the partnerships that were built with stores for distribution and manufacturers for receivers.

He then showed the audience the new 60 second commercial that will be in movie theaters all over the country starting August 10. It is an image spot, getting the name XM out to the general public. Technical education for the general public about what the service is and how to use it will be handled in the print ads the company plans to put in magazines later in the year.

Starting September 12th, XM begins the rollout of its service and receivers to the Dallas-Fort Worth and San Diego markets. Following the model of its partner, Direct TV, it will roll out in these markets first in order to work the bugs out. The company plans to have service begun to the entire Southwest by middle of October 2001. In November, XM will begin a nationwide television, radio and print ad campaign worth $100 million, which will entice consumers to sign up as the the holiday season approaches.

Channel programming includes neighborhoods according to XM's lead programmer, Lee Abrahms. The neighborhoods include Decades, Country, Hits, Rock, Urban, Jazz and Blues, Dance, Latin, World, Classical, Kids, News, Sports, Comedy and Variety. Extensively researched, these formats are highly focused and not diluted for mass appeal. The complete list of channels is available on the XM website (www.xmradio.com) and some channels are available for an online preview. Also announced were agreements for a Fox News channel and CNN Headline news.

Panero says that XM radios will be available in Cadillac automobiles before the end of this year.