A telecommunication revolution for Africa?

WorldSpace Launches the World's Largest Digital Audio
Broadcast System, Providing Unprecedented Coverage
across African Continent.

From the Cape to Cairo, from Dakar to Dubai,
First-of-its-Kind Satellite Radio Service Illuminates
Africa

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (October 21, 1999) - The
WorldSpace Corporation today launched the world's
largest digital audio broadcast system, inaugurating a
first-of-its-kind satellite radio service that will
transmit a wide array of multilingual radio
programming across the entire African continent.

At a gala ceremony here, news, music, entertainment
and education programs began flowing on three
broadcast beams from the WorldSpace "AfriStar"
satellite. WorldSpace is the U.S.-based company that
sees a huge untapped market for satellite digital
radio service in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin
America and the Caribbean. More than 600 dignitaries,
government officials and broadcasters attended the
launch ceremony.

The AfriStar satellite will supply more than 25
channels of news, music, entertainment and educational
programming. Each of three beams on the solar-powered
satellite will cover an enormous territory -- 14
million square kilometers -- and together will cover
all of Africa and the Middle East. Listeners will use
special radios manufactured by Hitachi, JVC,
Panasonic, and Sanyo to receive the WorldSpace signal.

At the service launch here, Noah A. Samara, WorldSpace
Chairman and CEO, said, "This truly is an historic day
in broadcasting. For 10 years we've worked towards
this day. For the first time, crystal clear radio
programming is being heard in areas that until now
have been under-served by traditional radio sources.
We are proud to have ushered in a new era with our
digital audio service."

Free, Multilingual Service Offers Wide Array of
Programming:

The free, multilingual WorldSpace radio service offers
a wide variety of programming with digital-quality
sound. Listeners can choose news from CNN
International or Bloomberg L.P., or the best of
African regional radio from South Africa's Kosmos
Digital, the Kenya Broadcasting Company, Egyptian
Radio and Television, Media 1 of Casablanca, Radio Sud
of Dakar and others. Programming is broadcast in
several languages, including English, Afrikaans,
French and Arabic.

Using its state-of-the-art studios in London and
Washington, DC, WorldSpace has created its own
original programming, from modern rock, contemporary
pop hits and global dance, as well as spoken word
programming for both children and adults.

"We're delighted with the diversity of broadcasters
that we have been able to offer our listeners," Samara
said. "This validates our long-held belief that a
critical need exists for high quality programming that
reaches a much wider geographic audience than with
today's conventional analog radio systems. Ultimately,
our programming partners may be able to reach as many
as one billion people through our broadcast system."

For more info, please visit:
http://www.worldspace.com/

P.S. I really doubt it. The satellite audio receiver
sells for US$170-210 for the models available. Unless
used by local stations, it may be cheaper to use a
good radio for the ordinary citizen. May be prices
will drop soon.