XM Satellite Radio to Launch Five More Channels for Major Cities

WASHINGTON, July 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- XM Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: XMSR) the nation's leading provider of satellite radio with more than 2.1 million subscribers, is launching five more channels dedicated to traffic and weather in major metropolitan areas on August 2.

XM will add traffic and weather channels devoted to Atlanta (XM Channel 227), Miami-Ft. Lauderdale (XM Channel 230), Minneapolis-St. Paul (XM Channel 219), San Diego (XM Channel 223), and Seattle (XM Channel 220) for a total of 21 traffic and weather channels for XM subscribers nationwide.

The XM Instant Traffic & Weather service offers the most comprehensive traffic information available anywhere on the radio, using advanced technology, roadside sensors, police and fire department information, local eyewitness reports, and other resources, produced by a dedicated staff of traffic and weather experts in cooperation with a national network of traffic data collection professionals.

The XM Instant Traffic and Weather service exclusively provides:

• 21 channels of traffic and weather information about the nation's most traffic-congested metropolitan areas
• 24-hour, seven-day-a-week reports for each market, offering in-depth, continually updated information
• Travel times for major roadways, provided by Traffic Pulse technology on the ground in local markets
• Average speeds for major roadways, provided by Traffic Pulse technology on the ground in local markets
• Amber Alerts and other important public safety and homeland security notifications on the air and displayed in text form on the radio display

"We are very excited to be expanding our popular XM Instant Traffic & Weather service to include five more major markets," said Hugh Panero, President and CEO of XM Satellite Radio. "XM provides the most comprehensive traffic information you can find on the radio. We're using advanced technology to give drivers the information they need, whenever they need it. With 24- hour traffic and weather reports, you can plan your route, avoid delays, and save time."

In addition to the five upcoming traffic and weather channels, XM launched 16 channels earlier this year: New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Boston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Chicago, Houston, Detroit, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, Tampa-St. Petersburg, Orlando, Baltimore, Pittsburgh and St. Louis.

XM Instant Traffic & Weather channels are part of XM's critically- acclaimed programming line-up, which offers more than 120 digital radio channels of commercial-free music and premier news, talk, sports, and entertainment for a monthly fee of $9.99. XM's traffic and weather reports are broadcast nationally and available to all XM subscribers at no additional cost.

XM Instant Traffic & Weather is provided by XM in cooperation with Mobility Technologies, a leader in high tech, innovative traffic data gathering solutions and The Weather Channel, a long-time programming partner of XM. Mobility's Digital Traffic Pulse collects key traffic information from local markets coast-to-coast, including drive times, vehicle speeds, counts (volume), and roadway density and transmits the data over a wireless network every 60 seconds to a data center. There, data is warehoused, mined in an advanced, proprietary process and aggregated for transmission to XM's Instant Traffic & Weather Center. The center is a state-of-the-art facility located at XM's broadcast headquarters in Washington, DC.

About XM Satellite Radio: XM Satellite Radio is America's #1 satellite radio service with more than 2.1 million subscribers. Broadcasting live daily from studios in Washington, DC, New York City and Nashville, Tennessee at the Country Music Hall of Fame, XM's 2004 lineup includes more than 120 digital channels of choice from coast to coast: 68 commercial-free music channels, featuring hip hop to opera, classical to country, bluegrass to blues; 33 channels of premier sports, talk, comedy, children's and entertainment programming; and more than 20 channels of the most advanced traffic and weather information for major metropolitan areas nationwide. Affordable, compact and stylish XM satellite radio receivers for the home, the car, the computer and boom boxes for "on the go" are available from retailers nationwide. In addition, XM is available in more than 80 different 2004 car models. XM is a popular factory-installed option on more than 40 new General Motors models, as well as a standard feature on several top-selling Honda and Acura models. Passengers on JetBlue Airways and AirTran Airways will be able to listen to XM's programming in-flight later in 2004. This fall, XM will offer XM NavTraffic, a new service that will provide real- time traffic information for vehicle navigation systems. For more information about XM, visit http://www.xmradio.com.