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Telefonica de Espana Expands Capabilities of DIRECWAY Broadband Satellite Network

Posted on: Tuesday, 16 March 2004, 06:00 CST

GERMANTOWN, Md., March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Hughes Network Systems Europe (HNSE), Europe's leading provider of broadband satellite solutions, Hughes Network Systems Inc. (HNS), today announced it has signed a contract with Telefonica de Espana, a leading Spanish telecommunications services provider, to further expand its DIRECWAY satellite services. The agreement adds Voice over IP (VoIP) services to the existing Telefonica DIRECWAY(R) network. In addition, HNS Europe will supply up to 15,000 DW6000 broadband terminals enabled with the DW6040 Voice Appliance.

Under the economic sponsorship of the European Union (EU), Telefonica is implementing the DIRECWAY VoIP solution to replace the existing obsolete rural telephony network, as part of the TRAC-replacement program. This program calls for providing Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) services to consumers in rural areas of Spain in compliance with the Universal Service Obligation. In addition, broadband Internet services will also be provided in rural areas.

"HNS Europe is very proud to have been selected for the satellite portion of this important initiative. We have worked closely with Telefonica for many years to provide its customers across Spain with satellite solutions that are reliable, flexible, and cost effective," said Luigi Pagni, vice president for Hughes Network Systems Europe. "We are grateful for Telefonica's continued confidence and trust in HNS to provide superior technology at reasonable cost."

"Telefonica chose the HNS solution because of better equipment performance, better pricing, minimal implementation risks, and lower operational costs," said Enrique Salvatierra Jimeno, director, submarine cable and satellite, infrastructure engineering department at Telefonica de Espana. "Because of our long standing relationship with HNS, we are confident they can meet our requirements."

Installation of the 15,000 remote sites began in December of 2003, with completion slated for 2006.

About Hughes Network Systems

Hughes Network Systems, Inc. (HNS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hughes Electronics Corporation (HUGHES), is the world's leading provider of broadband satellite network solutions for businesses and consumers, with more than 600,000 systems ordered or shipped to customers in 85 countries. HNS pioneered the development of high-speed satellite Internet access services, which it markets globally under the DIRECWAY(R) brand and is a major supplier of mobile satellite networks, including GSM-enabled portable handsets and Internet devices. In addition, HNS is a leading manufacturer of DIRECTV(R) satellite television receivers, having shipped over 14 million to date.

Headquartered outside Washington, D.C. in Germantown, Maryland, USA, HNS maintains sales and support offices worldwide. HUGHES is a unit of Fox Entertainment, part of the News Corporation. To learn more about HNS, please visit http://www.hns.com/.

About Hughes Network Systems Europe

Hughes Network Systems Europe (HNSE) is Hughes Network Systems, Inc.'s (HNS) operating and sales organization for the European market. HNSE has facilities in Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Czech Republic. Utilizing its satellite hub earth stations and network operations centers in Griesheim, Germany and Milton Keynes, U.K., HNSE provides DIRECWAY(R) broadband satellite services throughout the continent, both directly and through a growing family of value-added service providers.

HNSE designs, develops, installs and maintains a wide variety of enterprise network solutions and is the leading provider in Europe of high- speed, broadband Internet access and intranet/extranet managed solutions to enterprises of any size. Its customer base spans all major market sectors, including oil and gas, retail, automotive, banking, restaurants and government. For more information or to find a contact for your region, please visit http://www.hnseu.com/.

About Telefonica de Espana

Telefonica Group is one of the world's leading telecommunications companies. Telefonica is the leading operator in the Spanish and Portuguese speaking markets and the sixth biggest operator in the world in terms of market capitalization. Its activities are centered mainly on the fixed and mobile telephony businesses with broadband as the key tool for the development of both of these.

Telefonica is a 100% public company, with almost 1.7 million direct shareholders. Its share capital is currently comprised of 4,955,891,361 ordinary shares traded on the Spanish Stock Market (Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and Valencia) and on those in London, Paris, Frankfurt, Tokyo, New York, Lima, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo and the SEAQ International Exchange in London. To learn more about Telefonica, please visit http://www.telefonica.com/.

HUGHES, Hughes Network Systems, DIRECWAY, and TES are trademarks of Hughes Electronics Corporation. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Hughes Networks System Europe

CONTACT: Judy Blake of Hughes Network Systems, +1-301-601-7330,jblake@hns.com; or Colleen Stroh of Brodeur Worldwide, +1-202-775-2648,cstroh@brodeur.com, for Hughes Network Systems Europe and Hughes NetworkSystems

Web site: http://www.hns.com/http://www.hnseu.com/http://www.telefonica.com/

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