DORITOS MAKES HISTORY WITH WORLD'S FIRST EXTRA
TERRESTRIAL ADVERT

Today Doritos makes history, taking the UK's first step in
communicating with aliens as they broadcast the first ever advert
directed towards potential extra terrestrial life. The University of
Leicester has played a key part in the success of the project.

The transmission is being undertaken as part of the Doritos Broadcast
Project, which invited the UK public to create a 30 second video clip
that could be beamed out to the universe offering a snap shot of life
on earth to anyone 'out there'. 61% of the UK public believe this is
just the start of communication with ET life and that we will enter
into regular communication with an alien species at some stage in the
future*.

The winning space-ad entitled 'Tribe' was voted for by the British
public and directed by 25-year-old Matt Bowron. It will officially be
entered into the Guinness Book of Records and will be aired on the
more conventional medium of television on Sunday 15th June on ITV at
7.44pm in the ad break of the final Group B game of Euro 2008.

The message is being pulsed out over a six-hour period from
high-powered radars at the EISCAT European space station in the Arctic
Circle. The University of Leicester has also been involved in the
project from its inception.

EISCAT Director, Professor Tony van Eyken who will oversee the
transmission said: "The signal is directed at a solar system just 42
light years away from Earth, in the 'Ursa Major' or Great Bear
Constellation. Its star is very similar to our Sun and hosts a
habitable zone that could harbour small life supporting planets
similar to ours."

Peter Charles, Head of the Doritos Broadcast Project said: "We are
constantly looking to push the boundaries of advertising and this will
go further than any brand has gone before. By broadcasting the winning
ad to the Universe, Doritos is delivering a world first and Matt
Bowron, the winner, will go down in advertising folklore. We also
shouldn't be too surprised if the first aliens start arriving on
planet Earth immediately demanding a bag of Doritos."

The broadcast received praise from Nick Pope, former Head of the MoD's
UFO project. Nick, a leading authority on UFO sightings and alien
abductions commented: "I support this bold new venture in space
communication. As humanity reaches out to the stars, this broadcast
could lead to us finding the real ET. This is a historic day in our
continuing search for alien life."

Dr Darren Wright, a New Blood Lecturer of the University of Leicester
Department of Physics and Astronomy said: "The Radio and Space Plasma
Physics Group and Department of Physics and Astronomy as a whole at
the University of Leicester has a very high international profile in
the area of Space Physics.

"An important part of this project is that it provides an additional
component to the Physics and Astronomy Department's ever increasing
outreach programme. The ad to be transmitted has been created by the
public following a national competition thus increasing public
awareness of space activities.

"The University is particularly committed to outreach programmes along
with the National Space Centre - the brainchild of the University of
Leicester - and engaged in a number of programmes with the wider
public."

For further information on the broadcast, images, to see the advert or
to interview spokespeople including Nick Pope please Jamie Kaye, Kate
Brackenborough or James Regal at Frank PR on 020 7693 6999 or email
doritos@frankpr.it

Notes to Editors:

The cleverly created advert features a tribe of Doritos escaping from
the pack and sacrificing one of their own to the God of Salsa, as soon
as there are no humans around. It can be viewed online from today at
www.doritos.co.uk and will premier on ITV during the final Euro 2008
Group B game on Sunday 15th June @ 7.44pm

*The research for the Doritos Broadcast Research was carried out
online by Opinion Matters / Tickbox.net between 16.05.08 and 22.05.08
amongst a nationally representative sample of 2356 UK adults aged 16+.

Images:

Stills of the transmitters that make up the radar in Svalbard in the
Arctic Circle are available from Frank PR, tel: 020 7 693 6999. There
are also stills of various star constellations and space images. All
are free of charge, with no copyright restrictions.

UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER INVOLVEMENT IN PROJECT:

Dr Darren Wright, a New Blood Lecturer in the Radio and Space Plasma
Physics Group, Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of
Leicester has played a pivotal role in realising this project.

He said: "We were asked to comment on the feasibility of transmitting
a TV advert into space and were able to suggest that one of the radar
facilities available to the UK solar-terrestrial physics community,
EISCAT (www.eiscat.com) would be an ideal tool to do this since it can
transmit binary images, has a very high effective radiated power and a
narrow beam width of only 0.5 degrees.

"I contacted the director of the facility, located in Svalbard,
Professor Tony van Eyken, who was pleased to be able to participate.
The EISCAT Svalbard radar is collocated with the SPEAR radar facility
(www.ion.le.ac.uk/spear), operated by the Radio and Space Plasma
Physics Group in the Dept of Physics and Astronomy at the University
of Leicester.

"My colleague Dr Nigel Bannister thought of the idea to transmit the
advert to a nearby star (47 UMa, 42 ly distant) known to have a
planetary system, thereby stimulating extra public interest. The idea
of transmitting an ad into space is somewhat controversial but still
of scientific interest. This could be a test for future very long
range communications and it gives us an opportunity to tell the
Universe we are here (in case someone out there is listening - like
reversal of the SETI programme!).

"There could also be potential commercial interest in enterprises like
this. Imagine one day that companies on Earth might wish to advertise
to other planetary colonies within our solar system –for example if
man ever moves to colonise Mars!

Another important part of this project is that it provides an
additional component to the Physics and Astronomy Department's ever
increasing outreach programme. The ad to be transmitted has been
created by the public following a national competition thus increasing
public awareness of space activities."

Notes to Editors:

Dr Wright is available for interview- please contact him via: +44 116
2523568 or ring Ather Mirza on 0116 252 3335

Source: This press release is adapted from one issued by Frank PR