DISH Networkô Now Offers Sacramento Metro Area Local Channels Via Satellite Television

EchoStar Communications Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH, DISHP) has announced that DISH Networkô is now offering local KXTV-ABC (Ch. 10), KOVR-CBS (Ch. 13), KCRA-NBC (Ch. 3), and KTXL-FOX (Ch. 40) by satellite television to 16 counties in the greater area of Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto, California. With the addition of Sacramento, DISH Network now offers local channels via satellite TV in 24 cities and their metro areas nationwide. With final passage of satellite TV legislation by Congress in December 1999, DISH Network can now provide cable customers an affordable and complete alternative by offering local ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX network channels for a package price of only $4.99 per month. A national PBS channel can be purchased for an additional $1 per month. DISH Network also plans to offer popular independent network channels in some markets. DISH Network offers crystal-clear local channels to Sacramento in the following counties: West El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Colusa, East Solano, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, Sierra, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tuolumne, Yolo and Yuba. With the addition of Sacramento, DISH Network currently offers local channels in 24 metro areas, including: New York; Los Angeles, California; Chicago, Illinois; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, California; Boston, Massachusetts; Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas; Washington, D.C.; Detroit, Michigan; Atlanta, Georgia; Seattle-Tacoma, Washington; Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota; Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Florida; Phoenix, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Nashville, Tennessee; Salt Lake City, Utah; Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri; Houston, Texas; Cleveland, Ohio; Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, Florida and Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida. DISH Network is currently offering every cable customer a FREE DISH 500 satellite TV system and a FREE installation with a one-year commitment of only $39.98 per month in programming. This special offer has been extended until April 30, 2000. DISH Network's new DISH 500 satellite TV system offers local networks, as well as hundreds of all-digital channel choices using a single small dish, including popular sports, news and entertainment programming and dozens of premium movie channels. DISH Network offers popular sports, news, entertainment and movie channels, as well as foreign-language channels, including DISH Latino, DISH Network's comprehensive all-Spanish-language package. For more information about receiving your local channels along with hundreds of channels of popular satellite television programming, a FREE DISH 500 satellite TV system and FREE installation, visit www.dishnetwork.com, phone 800 333 DISH (3474), or contact your local DISH Network retailer. About DISH NetworkDISH Network is EchoStar's state-of-the-art direct broadcast satellite TV system that is capable of offering over 500 channels of digital video and CD-quality audio programming, fully MPEG-2/DVB compliant hardware and installation. DISH Network was also ranked number one in customer satisfaction among satellite/cable TV subscribers by the J.D. Power and Associates 1999 Cable/Satellite TV Customer Satisfaction Study. DISH Network offers hundreds of channels, including DolbyÆ Digital surround sound, interactive television and data services, all on a single dish antenna. DISH Network, which currently serves over 3.4 million customers, is a trademark of EchoStar Communications Corporation. DISH Network is located on the Internet at www.dishnetwork.com.