Familiar Voices and Faces From Mexico's Heartland Take U.S. Hispanic Viewers Home Via MEXICANAL(R) on DIRECTV PARA TODOS(R)

Familiar Voices and Faces From Mexico's Heartland Take U.S. Hispanic Viewers Home Via MEXICANAL(R) on DIRECTV PARA TODOS(R)

Available only on DIRECTV, New Channel Offers Regional, Local News and Entertainment Programming From Towns, Cities, Regions Outside Mexico City

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., July 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DIRECTV is bringing the heartland of Mexico home to viewers in the United States.

DIRECTV, Inc., in association with Castalia Communications and Cablecom, is providing exclusively for its DIRECTV PARA TODOS(R) service customers, MEXICANAL, a new channel that will enable Mexicans from regions outside Mexico City to watch their favorite television programs from their hometowns, cities and regions of origin.

Recognizing the need for local and regional programming among the vast majority of Mexicans in the United States, who are from areas outside Mexico City, DIRECTV selected the best regional and original programming from public broadcasters, independent producers and local access stations from more than six regions across Mexico. The channel will initially feature programming from Guanajuato, Jalisco, Estado de Mexico, Nuevo Leon and San Luis Potosi, among others.

Local newscasts like "Impulso informativo" from Jalisco, or the poignant stories told on "Me Voy Pa'l Norte," a popular TV program from Guanajuato about its people who emigrated to the United States, will be a regular programming staple on MEXICANAL, a general news and entertainment channel featuring the best programming from Mexico's heartland. The new channel will be available exclusively to DIRECTV PARA TODOS customers in August.

"We believe MEXICANAL represents the most important channel to be added to the Hispanic television landscape in the past five years," said Mark Ryan, senior director, Marketing, DIRECTV, Inc. "So much of the programming that Mexicans living in the U.S. see is from networks that focus coverage on news and events from Mexico City, leaving the 95 percent of Mexicans from areas outside the capitol city un-served. We're correcting the imbalance by introducing a rich tapestry of regional programming that will not only inform viewers of the news and events that happen in their town, city or region of origin, but also rekindle an emotional connection for viewers who grew up with this programming."

"Castalia's commitment to bringing the best programming available from Latin America and Europe into the United States is clearly demonstrated in the creation of MEXICANAL, a challenging and compelling channel targeting all Mexicans living in the United States," said Maria Urquiaga, senior vice president of Programming and Productions, Castalia Communications. "MEXICANAL's state-of-the-art facility in Mexico is staffed by an accomplished team of Mexican professionals who have enabled us to create a strong personality for the channel. MEXICANAL's on-air image reflects the passion and creativity of this team as well as the audience they are dedicated to serve."

Among the initial programmers contributing to MEXICANAL are Canal 7 Guadalajara, Jalisco; TV4 Leon, Guanajuato; Television Mexiquense Toluca, Estado de Mexico; TVNL Monterrey, Nuevo Leon and Canal Universo, San Luis Potosi.

In addition to news programs like 34-12 Noticias, Impulso informativo (C7 Jalisco), Informativo Nuevo Leon (TVNL), TV4 Noticias (Guanajuato) and Universo informativo (San Luis Potosi), the channel will also feature Sports: "Futbol de Casa;" Musicals: "Tierra Grupera," "Modular," and "Adiccion Visual;" Magazines: "Te Levanta," "Al Dia;" Debates: "De Frente" and "Sentidos;" Tourism: "Guia 34" and "De Kiosko en Kiosko;" Childrens' shows: "Asi funciona" and "Click Club;" Public Service Programs: "Esperando al Bebe;" Documentaries: "Festividades" and Me Voy Pa'l Norte," as well as coverage of special cultural and sports events such as Mexican Pacific League and Mexican Baseball League.

About DIRECTV, Inc.

DIRECTV is the nation's leading digital television service provider with 14.4 million customers. DIRECTV, the Cyclone Design logo and DIRECTV PARA TODOS are registered trademarks of DIRECTV, Inc. DIRECTV (NYSE:DTV), a world-leading provider of digital multichannel television entertainment services, is approximately 34 percent owned by News Corporation Ltd.

About DIRECTV PARA TODOS(R) Programming

Launched in October 1999, the DIRECTV PARA TODOS service offers the most comprehensive Spanish- and English-language programming available at an affordable price. The service provides access to more than 50 Spanish- language channels* including sports, movies, music, news and educational networks and 210 English-language channels of DIRECTV(R) programming, featuring the largest selection of pay per view choices and sports programming available. *Includes English-language broadcast channels with alternate Spanish audio.

About Castalia Communications

Castalia Communications is an independent distributor and producer of cable and satellite channels internationally. The company has offices in Atlanta, New York, Miami, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Lima, Peru and Barcelona, Spain. Castalia offers a wide array of services, including cable channel affiliate sales and marketing, advertising sales, new business development, programming, production, acquisition and distribution. Currently, the company's clients include BBC World, Satelites Mexicanos S.A. de CV (AlternaTV), TV Globo International, MGM Networks Latin America LLC, German TV and Grupo Banderaintes.

About Cablecom

Cablecom is a Multiple System Operator ("MSO") based in Mexico City serving 66 communities, located in 13 states throughout Mexico. A leading cable operator, Cablecom is the 4th largest cable provider in Mexico. The company is at the forefront of technological innovations and currently provides customers with basic and premium video services as well as data and Internet broadband access.

MEXICANAL Programming Summary

State/Region Channel Program
Estado de Television
Mexico Mexiquense Con nombre y apellidos
Personajes de barrio
34-14 Noticias
Te levanta
Guia 34
Semilla mexiquense
Mujeres que trabajan
Adiccion visual
Desde la mirandilla
Acercate
Futbol de casa
Click club
Ecoambientes
Asi funciona
Raices municipales

Nuevo Leon TVNL Tu otro yo
Sonero
Leyendas de Nuevo Leon
Clave 20
De frente
Mujeralia
Tierra grupera
Informativo Nuevo Leon
Esto es... beisbol
Esperando al bebe
Hora dorada
Vida plena
Reportajes de Alvarado
Taller abierto
Ayer y hoy
Al dia
Ninos TV con Lili
Romanticos

Jalisco C7 Jalisco Impulso
DIF responde
De kiosko en kiosco
Modular
Poptico
Tiempo libre
Rubrica
Estrategias al cubo

Guanajuato TV4 Guanajuato Me voy pa'l norte
Cervantino
Veredas y caminos
Skape
Festividades
Mas alla del deporte
TV 4 Noticias

San Luis Potosi Cablecom Universo informativo

Source: DIRECTV, Inc.

CONTACT: Robert Mercer of DIRECTV, Inc., +1-310-726-4683; or Jennifer
Gonzalez of PainePR, +1-213-996-3804, or Jeff Pryor of Pryor & Associates,
+1-818-338-3555, both for DIRECTV, Inc.

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