WorldSpace Granted Regulatory Approval for Terrestrial Repeater Licenses

WorldSpace Granted Regulatory Approval for Terrestrial Repeater Licenses

Licenses Enable Mobile Service Initiatives in Bahrain and United Arab Emirates

SILVER SPRING, Md., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- WorldSpace, Inc., (NASDAQ:WRSP), one of the world leaders in satellite-based digital radio services, today announced that it has received licenses from the Telecommunications Regulatory Authorities (TRA) of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for terrestrial repeater networks. The licenses will enable WorldSpace to deploy mobile satellite radio services in those countries. WorldSpace plans to rollout the mobile services in the first half of 2006.

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"The mobile rollout in these areas is part of WorldSpace's overall strategy to opportunistically target additional markets within our coverage area at a minimal incremental cost," said Noah Samara, chairman and CEO, WorldSpace. "We believe this service will be particularly attractive as a 'voice from home' offering to expatriates living in the UAE and Bahrain, where they make up approximately 75% of the population."

The UAE and Bahrain are attractive markets for WorldSpace services. The UAE has a population of over four million people with a GDP per capita of approximately $17,000 and one million vehicles in service. In particular, Dubai (part of the UAE) is a major international trade and tourist center, drawing over 16 million visitors annually. Bahrain has a population of approximately 700,000 with a GDP per capita of approximately $20,000 and 630,000 vehicles in service.

About WorldSpace, Inc.

WorldSpace (NASDAQ:WRSP) is the world's only global media and entertainment company positioned to offer a satellite radio experience to consumers in more than 130 countries with five billion people, driving 300 million cars. WorldSpace delivers the latest tunes, trends and information from around the world and around the corner. WorldSpace subscribers benefit from a unique combination of local programming, original WorldSpace content and content from leading brands around the globe including the BBC, CNN, Virgin Radio, NDTV and RFI. WorldSpace's satellites cover two-thirds of the globe with six beams. Each beam is capable of delivering up to 80 channels of high quality digital audio and multimedia programming directly to WorldSpace Satellite Radios anytime and virtually anywhere in its coverage area. WorldSpace is a pioneer of satellite-based digital audio radio services (DARS) and was instrumental in the development of the technology infrastructure used today by XM Satellite Radio. For more information, visit http://www.worldspace.com/.

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Source: WorldSpace, Inc.

CONTACT: Judith Pryor of WorldSpace, +1-301-960-1242,
jpryor@worldspace.com; or Dacrie Brooks of Brodeur, +1-202-775-2646,
dbrooks@brodeur.com, for WorldSpace

Web site: http://www.worldspace.com/

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