August 14, 2000, The Hague – New Skies Satellites N.V., the global satellite communications company, announced today that it has been authorized to provide satellite services to, from and within Argentina by the country’s National Communications Commission. The authorization was granted to one of New Skies’ subsidiaries New Skies Satellites Argentina B.V.

Until now the Argentine market has been closed to all but Argentine and U.S.- licensed satellite companies; the US had obtained access under a previously negotiated arrangement. Argentine law requires a bilateral agreement before non-Argentine satellite systems may offer services in Argentina and the Dutch and Argentine administrations concluded a similar arrangement on August 9, 2000. “This authorization allows New Skies, headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands, to compete fairly with U.S. and Argentine satellite companies” said Andrew D’Uva, New Skies’ Associate General Counsel.

The authorization covers the entire usable frequency ranges of New Skies’ NSS-806 and NSS-803 satellites and, when it is launched, the NSS-7 satellite.

The NSS-806 satellite located at 319.5 degrees East provides simultaneous C-band coverage of the Americas and Europe and Ku-band coverage of Mercosur, and serves as the premier cable bird for Latin America with a neighborhood of more than 100 video channels of which 74 are in Spanish language.

Cable television systems in Latin America and Europe can take advantage of a single high-powered beam providing simultaneous coverage of the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking markets. This satellite supports a community of about 2000 cable head ends and is also used to connect an increasing number of Latin American ISPs to the US Internet backbone using New Skies’ Washington Mediaport facilities.

The NSS-803 satellite located at 338.5 degrees East, is New Skies’ principal satellite for the Atlantic Ocean region, covering the Americas, Europe, Middle East and the whole of the African continent. Its primary customers are broadcasters, large telephone companies and Internet Service Providers. It provides coverage of South America and all of Africa from a single orbital position, while providing connections between North America, Europe and the Middle East.









New Skies also has certain rights to use six additional orbital slots, most of which could be used to serve the Argentine market. Under terms of the agreement, satellites which are developed by New Skies in these orbital slots in the future can be authorized to serve Argentina.

“New Skies appreciates the many months of discussions, always carried out in the spirit of good faith, between the Dutch and the Argentine administrations required to conclude this market access agreement, which will promote increased competition in both markets,” said Andrew D’Uva. “We can now offer a full range of domestic and international satellite services to Argentine customers using the New Skies fleet.”

“We believe this is a good agreement for both countries. Argentine consumers will benefit immediately from the increased availability of satellite facilities offered by New Skies” said Carlos Killian, 1st Vice-President of Argentina’s National Communications Commission.

About New Skies
New Skies Satellites N.V. is a commercial satellite operator, based in The Hague, The Netherlands, offering video, voice and data distribution and Internet connectivity worldwide. Owned by more than 180 major telecom entities from over 140 countries around the world, New Skies operates a global network of five geostationary satellites with two others under construction. New Skies also has certain rights to use six additional orbital slots.

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For more information, please contact:
Daniëlle Keukenmeester Andrew D’Uva
New Skies Satellites New Skies Satellites
Corporate Communications Officer Associate General Counsel
Tel: +31 70 306 42 27 Tel: +31 70 306 41 09
Mob: +31 6 295 866 08 Mob: +31 6 212 211 16 dkeukenmeester@newskies.com aduva@newskies.com