NEWS!!!! NEWS!!!!
Applies to: PENN ADCM TSTR)
Penn National Enters Agreement to Serve as Exclusive Wagering Hub
Operator for TrackPower Pari-Mutuel Satellite Simulcasting Service
WYOMISSING, PA. & NEW YORK (April 30) BUSINESS WIRE -April 30,
1999--Penn National Gaming, Inc. (NASDAQ:PENN) and American Digital
Communications, Inc. (OTC BB:ADCM) today announced an agreement
pursuant to which Penn National will serve as the exclusive U.S.
wagering hub operator for the TrackPower direct-to-home pari-mutuel
digital satellite service. Penn National's exclusive hub operation
also includes other distribution media including the Internet, cable
television or broadcast television. The contemplated agreement is for
a minimum of five years, with a five-year renewal option. While
specific financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, American
Digital will receive payment for the TrackPower service based upon the
volume of wagering business generated.
TrackPower is a subscriber based service providing live horseracing
video feeds from participating race tracks to its paying subscribers
throughout the United States and the Caribbean. Racetracks providing
feeds to the service include Penn National's three race courses - Penn
National Race Course, Pocono Downs Racetrack and Charles Town Races, as
well as other participating racetracks including California's Santa
Anita Park. The TrackPower service is provided through direct-to-home
satellite transmissions over two channels via Loral's SkyVista
satellite system. Two additional channels are expected to be added to
the service by June 1999.
For the existing Penn National telephone account betting customers, the
TrackPower service can provide a new dimension of video enjoyment to
their horse racing experience. For the TrackPower subscribers, the
Penn National wagering hub provides an established and convenient on
line system for placing their wagers.
Peter M. Carlino, Chief Executive Officer of Penn National said, "Penn
National's role as the wagering hub operator for TrackPower provides an
exciting new revenue center for our Company while offering Penn
National a national reach that will grow as TrackPower expands its base
of subscribers and racetrack feeds. We expect to work closely with
TrackPower to provide a state of the art service that also looks to
incorporate distribution technologies including the Internet as well as
other broadband media."
John G. Simmonds, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of American
Digital Communications, Inc., added, "Penn National, an acknowledged
leader in pari-mutuel gaming with tens of thousands of existing
telephone account subscribers, has an unrivaled wealth of industry
experience, management talent and operating skill. The Penn National
agreement represents a significant new revenue stream for us. We are
pleased to join forces with them to provide the best in pari- mutuel
racing and wagering, accessible across the country."
Penn National owns, operates and conducts wagering at its Penn National
Race Course and Pocono Downs Racetrack, and at its ten off-track
wagering (OTW) facilities in Allentown, Erie, Reading, Chambersburg,
York, Williamsport, Lancaster, Hazleton, Carbondale and Johnstown,
Pennsylvania. Penn National also owns and operates Charles Town Races,
a live thoroughbred racing facility in Jefferson County, West Virginia,
which also features 935 slot machines.
Through TrackPower International Inc., ADCM delivers high quality live
horseracing video to subscribers throughout the United States,
including Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. ADCM uses the Skynet Direct
Platform to broadcast the TrackPower service as a niche-programming
package on EchoStar Communications Corporation's SkyVista(TM) DTH
television service. Skyet Direct is Loral Skynet's transmission and
distribution service that offers programmers a combination of its
Telstar fleet space segment with compression, encoding, uplinking,
format conversion and multiplexing from EchoStar's existing facilities
in Cheyenne, Wyoming. EchoStar also provides order processing,
receiver authorization, and billing from its customer service center in
Denver, Colorado. Except for the historical information in this press
release, this press release includes forward-looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to,
quarterly fluctuations in results, the management of growth, weather,
regulatory changes, and other risks detailed from time to time in the
Penn National's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Actual
results may differ materially from such information set forth herein.
-0- eb/ny*
CONTACT: Robert Ippolito
Chief Financial Officer
610/373-2400
or
Graham Simmonds
American Digital Communications, Inc.
905/839-1430
or
Joseph N. Jaffoni
Jaffoni & Collins Incorporated
212/835-8500 or penn@jcir.com
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