Randall Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 One step out of the way. No link, just reported on CNBC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaP'N GRuNGe Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 US Justice Department approves XM-Sirius radio dealupdated 9 minutes agoFont size: WASHINGTON - The Justice Department has approved Sirius Satellite Radio's $5 billion (euro3.2 billion) buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio. The merger was approved despite opposition from consumer groups and an intense lobbying campaign by the land-based radio industry. Regulators said the merger is not likely to substantially hurt competition or consumers. Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaP'N GRuNGe Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 I actually was just weighing buying Sat Radio and looking at the difference between the two. Was leaning toward Sirius. Now I wonder if I should sign up now or wait to see what comes of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 24, 2008 Author Share Posted March 24, 2008 (edited) I actually was just weighing buying Sat Radio and looking at the difference between the two. Was leaning toward Sirius. Now I wonder if I should sign up now or wait to see what comes of this. Some info here http://www.siriusmerger.com/ Edited March 24, 2008 by Randall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 About fn time. They've been delaying it over a year, hoping that one of the companies would go bankrupt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H8tank Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 This will help your decision Supercuts.... xm sucks. Sirius seriously has much, much better programming and music channels, plus they have NFL, any questions? And hey lulu, I seem to remember you calling me a liar when I brought this very topic up long ago, you ready to apologize yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 This will help your decision Supercuts.... xm sucks. Sirius seriously has much, much better programming and music channels, plus they have NFL, any questions? +1 I'm listening to "Movin' The Chains" right now on NFL Radio and it always provides a ton of great insight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moneymakers Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 This will help your decision Supercuts.... xm sucks. Sirius seriously has much, much better programming and music channels, plus they have NFL, any questions? And hey lulu, I seem to remember you calling me a liar when I brought this very topic up long ago, you ready to apologize yet? Yea LULU apologize. obama would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 24, 2008 Author Share Posted March 24, 2008 (edited) This will help your decision Supercuts.... xm sucks. Sirius seriously has much, much better programming and music channels, plus they have NFL, any questions? And hey lulu, I seem to remember you calling me a liar when I brought this very topic up long ago, you ready to apologize yet? Not in music they don't. In sports they do and music for young people they do, but in jazz and world music XM is better. They have millions of listeners that disagree with you. Are they all stupid? The NFL is great but both systems have a lot of other channels. Look not everyone wants to listen or watch the same thing. Why are you people so against freedom of choice and diversity? This will help your decision Supercuts.... xm sucks. Sirius seriously has much, much better programming and music channels, plus they have NFL, any questions? And hey lulu, I seem to remember you calling me a liar when I brought this very topic up long ago, you ready to apologize yet? That isn't what I said. You read what I say and suffer from selective understanding. What I said is if approved it would be heavily regulated. That may prove to be wrong but isn't yet. Edited March 24, 2008 by Randall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 Not sure what I think of this, given that there aren't any other serious (no pun intended) competitors in the industry. Then again, I'm not in the market for satellite radio right now, so I won't be potentially getting my pants pulled down over the price anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H8tank Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 I have XM at home with directv, and it sucks. No where near the variety, and the life partner agrees. I can find you 1 hundred billion people who had XM and switched to sirius. Find me one who switched back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaP'N GRuNGe Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 Not in music they don't. In sports they do and music for young people they do, but in jazz and world music XM is better. They have millions of listeners that disagree with you. Are they all stupid? The NFL is great but both systems have a lot of other channels. Look not everyone wants to listen or watch the same thing. Why are you people so against freedom of choice and diversity? That isn't what I said. You read what I say and suffer from selective understanding. What I said is if approved it would be heavily regulated. That may prove to be wrong but isn't yet. So XM is for Azazello and Sirius is for the rest of us? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtomicCEO Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 I can find you 1 hundred billion people who had XM and switched to sirius. You're on. Go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 You're on. Go! World population is 6.6 billion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egret Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 I actually was just weighing buying Sat Radio and looking at the difference between the two. Was leaning toward Sirius. Now I wonder if I should sign up now or wait to see what comes of this. Here's my favorite Sirius channel and what's been played. Great, great music on the channels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savage Beatings Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 I can find you 1 hundred billion people who had XM and switched to sirius. Find me one who switched back. You're on. Go! World population is 6.6 billion. Duh... he never said that they were all Earthlings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted March 27, 2008 Author Share Posted March 27, 2008 Duh... he never said that they were all Earthlings. AP 'A La Carte' Satellite Radio a Year Away Wednesday March 26, 5:20 pm ET By Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Business Writer Satellite Radio's Promise of 'A La Carte' Channel Choices Will Take Awhile to Reach Consumers WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. are pegging regulatory approval of their merger to giving consumers more control over the specific channels they buy. There's one catch: Customers would need new radios at up to $200 a pop. The companies' combined 17 million subscribers have radios that aren't interoperable. Radios that can receive signals from both companies likely wouldn't be available for up to a year after the merger -- and another year or two later for customers who get satellite radios via new car purchases. The Justice Department on Monday green-lighted Sirius' acquisition of XM and the companies are pitching the benefits of "a la carte" programming to the Federal Communications Commission, which must also sign off on the deal. The companies would offer "the first-ever a la carte options in subscription media," they said in a statement late Monday. XM and Sirius obtain most customers through auto makers, who offer the radios and the service in new cars. But carmakers require lead times of several years to update dashboards with new products so cars with interoperable radios likely wouldn't be on dealer lots for up to three years, predicts Jim Goss, a media analyst at Barrington Research. Thomas Barnett, assistant attorney general heading the Justice Department's antitrust division, said Wednesday that agency officials concluded interoperable radios would take two to three years to be available from automakers. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has expressed support for requiring cable companies to provide "a la carte" options and may want to set a media precedent by conditioning approval of the XM-Sirius deal on offering customers the right to choose which channels they receive, analysts said. Still, the FCC is likely to approve the transaction because the agency has "never to our knowledge" gone against Justice, says Kit Spring, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus. After Justice cleared the deal this week, both companies said "no existing radio will be made obsolete by the merger." Subscribers would be able to receive select programming from the provider they don't currently subscribe to on existing radios, the companies said. They haven't specified whether popular programming, such as Sirius' Howard Stern or XM's major league baseball, would be part of the "select programming" available. XM and Sirius say they plan to offer eight options that combine the companies' offerings, such as a "mostly music" package with 65 channels, for $9.99 a month -- less than the current flat rate of $12.95. Six of those eight options will be available on existing radios within six months of the deal's approval, the companies say. The two "a la carte" packages that promise the most flexibility, however, will require new radios. The cheapest "a la carte" option would offer 50 channels for $6.99 a month with additional channels costing 25 cents each, though premium choices, such as the NFL channel, would cost $3 or $6 each per month. Another "a la carte" plan would offer 100 channels for $14.99 a month. Analysts expect few current subscribers to pay for the new receivers. Current satellite radios cost between $40 and $200. Perhaps 5 percent to 10 percent of current subscribers "might go through the trouble" of buying new radios for the "a la carte" option, Stifel Nicolaus' Spring wrote in a recent note to clients. Spokesmen for Sirius and XM declined to comment beyond their statement because merger approval is still pending before the FCC. When the two companies debuted a decade ago, the FCC approved their launch with a requirement that they design interoperable radios, which the companies say they have done. But until now there was little incentive to invest in making the design commercially available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaP'N GRuNGe Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 I guess there's no real reason to wait. I think I'll just go ahead and pick up a Sirius radio sometime in the next month or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egret Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 I guess there's no real reason to wait. I think I'll just go ahead and pick up a Sirius radio sometime in the next month or two. Sirius sends me email deals all the time for new units. When you want to get one, let me know. I'll send you the deals that I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H8tank Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 The NFL channel is one awesome piece of NFL knowledge, those guys are great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godtomsatan Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 I don't need satellite radio. I just have conversations with myself and pretend it's All Things Considered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaP'N GRuNGe Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 Sirius sends me email deals all the time for new units. When you want to get one, let me know. I'll send you the deals that I have. Cool. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 Wis. AG Wants to Block Satellite Merger Thursday April 10, 2:48 pm ET By Todd Richmond, Associated Press Writer Wis. Attorney General Asks FCC to Block Satellite Radio Merger MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen wants federal regulators to block a deal to join the nation's only two satellite radio companies. The U.S. Justice Department decided earlier this month to permit Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s proposed $5 billion buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. The Federal Communications Commission still has to sign off on the deal. Van Hollen, a Republican, sent a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Wisconsin's congressional delegation on Monday complaining the deal would eliminate competition in the satellite radio industry, drive up prices for services and reduce channels available to Wisconsin listeners. "Broadcast radio is no substitute for satellite radio," Van Hollen wrote in the letter. Sirius wants to buy XM for about $5 billion. Van Hollen sent a letter to antitrust regulators in the U.S. Justice Department in September making the same arguments. But the agency approved the deal on March 24 with no conditions attached.The Justice Department said the two companies didn't compete against each other because subscribers had to purchase equipment exclusive to either XM or Sirius and ample competition exists in other audio entertainment forms, including iPods, high-definition radio and Internet radio -- a key argument the companies have used to push the deal. THE FCC has the authority to block the sale or impose conditions on pricing or program offerings. Eleven other state attorney generals sent a letter to the FCC's Martin in March expressing concerns about the Justice Department's decision and urging the FCC to address anticompetitive aspects of the buyout. FCC spokeswoman Mary Diamond declined to comment. Sirius and XM officials didn't immediately return messages Thursday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 Wis. AG Wants to Block Satellite MergerThursday April 10, 2:48 pm ET By Todd Richmond, Associated Press Writer Wis. Attorney General Asks FCC to Block Satellite Radio Merger MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen wants federal regulators to block a deal to join the nation's only two satellite radio companies. Sounds like another lap dog for terrestrial radio companies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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