CAL RIPKEN, JR. AND OTHER BASEBALL GREATS JOIN XM SATELLITE RADIO TO LAUNCH FIRST 24-HOUR MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL RADIO CHANNEL



Washington D.C. and New York, N.Y., February 14, 2005 -- XM Satellite Radio, the nation's leading provider of satellite radio with more than 3.2 million subscribers, will launch the nation's first 24-hour radio channel devoted exclusively to Major League Baseball (MLB) on Tuesday, February 15. The MLB Home Plate channel will feature news, listener call-in shows, interviews, and rebroadcasts of classic games.

Cal Ripken, Jr., the legendary Baltimore Orioles shortstop and record holder for most consecutive games played, will host an exclusive, weekly XM show on MLB Home Plate starting in March. Joining Cal on the show will be his brother, fellow MLB veteran Billy Ripken. "XM is expanding the reach of Major League Baseball to fans from coast to coast," Cal Ripken, Jr. said. "I'm excited to be part of the XM team, and our show is going to be a terrific program for baseball fans of all ages."

 

The Ripkens are part of an all-star line-up of XM on-air hosts, including baseball greats Rob Dibble, Kevin Kennedy, Larry Bowa, and Buck Martinez. The MLB Home Plate channel (XM Channel 175) is the first channel added to XM as part of its 11-year broadcasting and marketing agreement with Major League Baseball. As the official satellite radio network of Major League Baseball, XM also will add a suite of 15 channels to carry live play-by-play coverage of every Major League Baseball team. Game programming will begin during Spring Training and continue through the 2005 World Series.

"XM has assembled an all-star team to make the MLB Home Plate channel a must listen for every baseball fan," said Eric Logan, Executive Vice President of Programming at XM Satellite Radio. "You can hear the latest baseball news, relive the greatest moments in the sport, and phone in to talk with the athletes and broadcasters who know and love the game. It captures the fun and romanticism of the national pastime, and it's designed for everyone to listen, from little leaguers to long-time fans. It's one more example of XM's leadership in live sports."

"We are very excited about the launch of Major League Baseball coverage on XM Satellite Radio," said Tim Brosnan, Executive Vice President, Business, Major League Baseball. "With the launch of this exclusive, 24-hour Major League Baseball channel, XM will become a constant destination for fans to experience extensive live game action of every MLB team and up-to-the-minute highlights, analysis and discussion of the national pastime."

The general weekday schedule of MLB Home Plate beginning February 15 is (all times Eastern):

• 6-9AM: "MLB This Morning," a news-magazine-style show featuring leading sportscaster Mark Patrick, former Philadelphia Phillies All-Star shortstop Larry Bowa, and veteran player, manager, and broadcaster Buck Martinez.
• 9AM-Noon: "MLB This Morning," (encore broadcast)
• Noon-2PM: "MLB Beat," featuring the nation's top baseball writers talking one-on-one with Los Angeles Dodgers' play-by-play man Charley Steiner.
• 2-3PM: "Fantasy Focus," hosted by sportscaster Phil Wood, is a show for the millions of fantasy league participants, with reviews of the best and worst fantasy players and advice to callers about how best to manage their teams.
• 3-6PM: "The Show," with FOX Sports baseball commentator and former Boston Red Sox manager Kevin Kennedy and former Cincinnati Reds pitcher Rob Dibble, is a fast-paced afternoon show with top guests, game previews, and listener call-ins.
• 6-7PM: "MLB On Deck," hosted by Phil Wood, delivers live updates from the ballparks across the country before each evening's games.
• 7-11PM: "MLB Live," featuring Ronnie Lane, with guests, callers, game updates, and live game action throughout the evening.
• 11PM-3AM: "MLB Live," the late edition, hosted by Joe Castellano, offers game highlights, analysis, callers, and previews of upcoming match-ups.
• 3-6AM: "MLB Archives," including rebroadcasts of classic Major League Baseball games.

XM will add its suite of 15 channels for live play-by-play coverage of MLB games in March. Coverage will include broadcasts of every MLB team during the regular season and postseason, as well as select broadcasts from Spring Training. In order to reach the large number of Hispanic MLB fans, one of the 15 channels, MLB En Espanol, will be devoted to Spanish-language play-by-play and call-in shows.

MLB play-by-play channels will be XM channels 176 through 189. MLB En Espanol will be XM channel 190. XM's college sports channels will be relocated to channels 191-199.

XM is the leading provider of live sports in satellite radio. In addition to being the official satellite radio network of MLB, XM is the exclusive satellite radio provider for NASCAR and the official satellite radio service of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten, and Pac-10 college sports conferences. XM also carries ESPN Radio, ESPNews Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and Sporting News Radio. The latest models of XM radio receivers, such as the portable Delphi XM2go MyFi radio, the Delphi XM SKYFi2 radio, and the Audiovox XR9 radio, have sports tickers that display current scores for professional and college sports teams.