NDS and SES AMERICOM Join Forces to Offer New NDS Synamedia(TM) Metro IPTV Middleware Solution To U.S. Telcos.

COSTA MESA, Calif. & AMSTERDAM, Netherlands -- NDS Group plc (Nasdaq:NNDS) (Brussels:NNDS) and SES AMERICOM (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG):

Highlights:

--SES AMERICOM to distribute NDS Synamedia(TM) Metro as part of its turnkey IP-PRIME IPTV solution for U.S. telecommunications companies (telcos)

--Digital Rights Management (DRM) provided by NDS VideoGuard(R), currently protecting content on 65 million set-top boxes

--Application development environment based on NDS MediaHighway(TM) middleware, currently running on 41.6 million set-top boxes

--First global distribution agreement for the recently released Synamedia Metro software

IBC, Stand 1.171 - NDS, the leading provider of technology solutions for digital pay-TV, today announced that SES AMERICOM, a leading satellite operator and services provider in North America, will distribute the NDS Synamedia Metro IPTV middleware solution to the North American telecommunications market. This is the first global distribution agreement for Synamedia Metro, which was released in June of this year.

Synamedia Metro brings the world's most advanced television technologies to the telecommunications industry, enabling telcos to offer a compelling IPTV middleware solution to their subscribers. The solution enables IPTV operators to offer advanced features to their customers including interactive TV applications (iTV), Video on Demand (VOD), Electronic Program Guides (EPG), and interactive games.

These features are made available through Synamedia Metro using the NDS MediaHighway set-top box (STB) middleware application development platform. Synamedia Metro also provides content protection through NDS VideoGuard, the most widely used conditional access solution, currently deployed on 65 million set top boxes worldwide.

This announcement builds upon the previous agreement between NDS and SES AMERICOM to distribute Synamedia, an IPTV solution including the VideoGuard content protection system and DRM software. With this new agreement, SES AMERICOM has extended its relationship with NDS to distribute the Synamedia Metro solution to provide an end-to-end IPTV solution.

SES AMERICOM will distribute Synamedia Metro through IP-PRIME, its centralized, satellite-delivered IP television distribution system that permits telcos to bundle traditional standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD) programming on a single line with their voice and Internet services without having to build and run an expensive IPTV headend system. SES AMERICOM's IP-PRIME platform offers two delivery solutions: one path delivers the secure video content to the telcos for their distribution to subscribers; alternately, the IP-PRIME content can be passed through directly to subscribers' set-top boxes using the Synamedia Metro IPTV middleware.

Nigel Smith, Vice President, NDS Broadband Internet Group, said: "Synamedia Metro is a next-generation IPTV middleware providing reliable, flexible and highly scalable applications which, until now, were not available in IPTV solutions. Based on our experience of more than a decade, building end-to-end open TV solutions which support tens of millions of subscribers, we can bring advanced facilities to the telcos utilizing the exciting medium of broadband IP. By extending this agreement with SES AMERICOM to distribute our Synamedia Metro solution, we can provide these secure, premium TV services to the telcos simply and quickly, offering them a fast, low-cost and effective way to establish a new revenue stream through the IP-PRIME platform."

"Synamedia Metro is built on the NDS MediaHighway middleware, which is in tens of millions of consumer set top boxes around the world, making it a proven addition to the IP-PRIME IPTV distribution solution," said Alan Young, chief technology officer for SES AMERICOM. "With our multiple middleware options and NDS's conditional access system in place, and set top box announcements on the horizon, IP-PRIME is the leading, fully-managed IPTV system in the U.S."

About NDS

NDS Group plc (NASDAQ:NNDS) (Brussels:NNDS), a News Corporation company, secures and enables content anytime, anywhere on any device. See www.nds.com for more information about NDS.

About SES AMERICOM

SES AMERICOM, a SES GLOBAL company (Euronext Paris:SESG) and LuxX:SESG), is the largest supplier of satellite services in the U.S. and a recognized pioneer of global satellite communications services. Celebrating its 30th anniversary of the launch of its first satellite, the company today operates a fleet of 18 spacecraft in orbital positions predominantly providing service throughout the Americas. As a member of the SES GLOBAL family, SES AMERICOM is able to provide end-to-end telecommunications solutions to any region of the world via a fleet of 43 satellites. In addition, AMERICOM Government Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary, is dedicated to providing satellite-based communications solutions to both civilian and defense agencies of the U.S. government. With its combined operations, SES AMERICOM serves broadcasters, cable programmers, aeronautical and maritime communications integrators, Internet service providers, mobile communications networks, government agencies, educational institutions, carriers and secure global data networks with efficient communication and content distribution solutions.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-looking Statements

This document contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's views and assumptions regarding future events and business performance as of the time the statements are made. Actual results may differ materially from these expectations due to changes in global economic, business, competitive market and regulatory factors. More detailed information about these and other factors that could affect future results is contained in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The "forward-looking statements" included in this document are made only as of the date of this document and we do not have any obligation to publicly update any "forward-looking statements" to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as required by law.