Hughes Becomes Major XM Holder

Staff -- TWICE, 12/3/2001

Washington — The stake in XM Radio owned by Motient Corp. has been transferred to Hughes Electronics in the form of a stock payment. Hughes, which owns a small portion of Motient, now becomes the largest shareholder in XM, with a 13.6 percent stake. General Motors, Hughes' parent, has a 5 percent share of XM.

If the Echostar purchase of Hughes is approved, Echostar would inherit Hughes' assets, which include DirecTV as well as Hughes investment in XM. At that point, Echostar would become the largest shareholder in XM Radio.

The share exchange will eliminate all remaining shares of XM Radio Class B Common Stock by transferring this to Motient's guarantors, which includes Hughes.

The investment by Hughes in XM is totally separate from its stake in DirecTV.