ESPN and XM Satellite Radio to Launch 'ESPN Xtra' Radio Channel
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NEWS RELEASE ESPN and XM Satellite Radio to Launch 'ESPN Xtra' Radio Channel 1/28/2008 WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ESPN and XM Satellite Radio today announced that XM will add a new slate of ESPN programs to its line up starting February 4 featuring a new ESPN Radio-dedicated channel. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070313/XMLOGO ) XM and ESPN will re-brand XM channel 141 as ESPN Xtra. This channel will enhance its current schedule of ESPNEWS programming with new shows and specials, including three of ESPN Radio's premier talk programs from its owned stations in New York and Dallas, which will be available for the first time for a national radio audience only on XM. The ESPN Xtra channel will also air content produced by ESPN exclusively for XM throughout the year, live coverage of events ranging from the X Games to the ESPY Awards, and ESPN columnist Bill Simmons' popular podcast from ESPN.com. In addition to the newly branded ESPN Xtra channel, XM will continue to offer ESPN Radio (XM channel 140). "ESPN is the most popular brand name in sports, and XM is the nation's leading satellite radio company," said Eric Logan, XM executive vice president, programming. "ESPN has been an integral partner of XM since the day XM started broadcasting in 2001. Now we're going to be bringing some of the best sports talk shows from ESPN Radio stations to millions of new listeners across the country, as well as ESPN specials that you can only hear on XM. This new channel -- ESPN Xtra -- is another important milestone in our partnership with ESPN." Traug Keller, ESPN senior vice president, production, business divisions, said, "We are excited about our expanded 1 relationship with XM with nationally exclusive talk programming from two of our owned stations, and special event programming. The unique offering of terrestrial, podcast, and television audio increases the value of XM to its subscribers, and provides new ways for ESPN listeners to access our content." The Michael Kay Show and The Max Kellerman Show from 1050 AM ESPN Radio in New York and Galloway and Company from 103.3 FM ESPN Radio in Dallas will be heard nationwide on the ESPN Xtra channel, marking the first time that these programs will be aired nationwide. The Michael Kay Show will be heard weekdays on the ESPN Xtra channel from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET. In addition to hosting the radio show, Kay serves as television play-by-play announcer for the New York Yankees and the host of Centerstage on the YES Network. The Max Kellerman Show will air on ESPN Xtra weekdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Kellerman is also an analyst for HBO Boxing and is well known for his hosting stints on ESPN2, Fox Sports Net, and Spike TV. Galloway and Company, hosted by Randy Galloway, will be carried on ESPN Xtra weekdays from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Galloway has been a radio talk show host for 21 years, and he writes a newspaper column for the Fort Worth Star- Telegram. ESPN Xtra specials will include an in-depth Major League Baseball preview in advance of Opening Day. This special comes on the heels of December's BCS preview special hosted by ESPN's Colin Cowherd that ESPN created for XM. Bill Simmons, a.k.a. "The Sports Guy," is a columnist for ESPN.com's "Page 2" and ESPN The Magazine. The New England native, renowned for his passion for Boston sports teams, will be heard Fridays at 3 p.m. and at 10 p.m. ET when ESPN Xtra airs his popular 40-minute podcast from ESPN.com. About XM XM (NASDAQ: XMSR) is America's number one satellite radio company with more than 8.5 million subscribers. Broadcasting live daily from studios in Washington, DC, New York City, Chicago, the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Toronto and Montreal, XM's 2008 lineup includes more than 170 digital channels of choice from coast to coast: commercial-free music, premier sports, news, talk radio, comedy, children's and entertainment programming; and the most advanced traffic and weather information. XM, the leader in satellite-delivered entertainment and data services for the automobile market through partnerships with General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Porsche, Ferrari, Subaru, Suzuki and Toyota, is available in 140 different vehicle models for 2008. XM's industry-leading products are available at consumer electronics 2 retailers nationwide. For more information about XM hardware, programming and partnerships, please visit http://www.xmradio.com/. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements in this press release include demand for XM Satellite Radio's service, the Company's dependence on technology and third party vendors, its potential need for additional financing, as well as other risks described in XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.'s Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on 3-1-07. Copies of the filing are available upon request from XM Radio's Investor Relations Department. Programming is subject to change. About ESPN Radio ESPN Radio is the nation's largest sports radio network, providing more than 9,000 hours of talk and event content to nearly 750 non-duplicative stations reaching more than 20 million listeners* each week. ESPN Radio's nearly 350 full-time affiliates, offering round-the-clock programming, include owned stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Pittsburgh. Additionally, ESPN Radio is the exclusive national radio network for the NBA, Major League Baseball and the Bowl Championship Series, and also broadcasts 17 regular-season college football games and other content. ESPNRadio.com is the most listened to sports radio destination online, with more than 250,000** monthly listeners. Additionally, sports fans can access all of ESPN Radio's daily content on-demand through ESPN Radio Insider (a part of ESPN.com's premium content section, ESPN Insider). ESPN Radio content is also available via ESPN's 40 original free podcasts on iTunes and ESPN's PodCenter, which are downloaded more than 1.5 million times per week. * Knowledge Networks/SRI ** AndoMedia WebMetrics Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070313/XMLOGO AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/ PRN Photo Desk, [email protected] SOURCE: XM Satellite Radio CONTACT: David Butler of XM Satellite Radio, +1-202-380-4317, [email protected] Web site: http://www.xmradio.com/ 3 http://www.espn.com/ 4.