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Sirius & XM to Merge
From two to one...
Sirius and XM Radio today officially announced their $13 billion merger plans. Mel Karmazin, CEO of SIRIUS, will become CEO of the new combined company while Gary Parsons, currently Chairman of XM, will become Chairman. The NY Post broke the news this morning; also see Associated Press, Reuters and more...
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skiguy219
join:2001-02-01
Beaverton, OR

skiguy219

Member

FTC?

I thought the FTC was going to say no?

P Ness
You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already
Premium Member
join:2001-08-29
way way out

P Ness

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

they said the current rules say "NO" but the FCCHitler then said that "the rules of course can be modified very easly to allow", after some phone calls were made i am sure by XM Sirius.

en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA

en102

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Re: FTC?

I wonder if I'll get Howard Stern on my DirecTv XM now ?

JamesPC
join:2005-10-12
Orange, CA

JamesPC

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Re: FTC?

good for the XM customers....XM DONT FUCK THIS UP
netdogg3
join:2003-02-27
Staten Island, NY

netdogg3

Member

Re: FTC?

said by JamesPC:

good for the XM customers....XM DONT FUCK THIS UP
I am an XM subscriber.I wan NOTHING to do with Sirius' shallow playlists.This is why I canceled my Sirius service after 2 months of listening to the same old Top 40 music.I hope this merger DOES NOT HAPPEN.

RideRed
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join:2005-06-18
USA

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Probably not. Most talk show programming isn't available on DTV.

kyramilan
join:2006-11-26
Pensacola, FL

1 edit

kyramilan

Member

Re: FTC?

Not Gonna Merge

"Questioned last month about a possible Sirius-XM merger, the F.C.C. chairman, Kevin J. Martin, initially appeared to be skeptical, but later said that if such a deal were proposed, the agency would consider it.

In a statement yesterday, Mr. Martin acknowledged that the F.C.C. rule could complicate a merger but said the commission would evaluate the proposal. “The hurdle here, however, would be high,” he said."

But critics are lining up. The National Association of Broadcasters, a trade group that represents broadcast radio and television stations, issued a statement within hours of the XM-Sirius announcement.

“In coming weeks, policy makers will have to weigh whether an industry that makes Howard Stern its poster child should be rewarded with a monopoly,” it said.

»www.nytimes.com/2007/02/ ··· f=slogin

BabyBear
Keep wise ...with Nite-Owl
join:2007-01-11

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Dont see how this merger can go thru, if the DirecTV/Dish merger didn't.

If it does, wonder which name they'll keep? XM cause they have more subs?

And who would come along and buy up the combined company next? AT&T? Comcast? Maybe Dish or DirecTV?

CableTool
Poorly Representing MYSELF.
Premium Member
join:2004-11-12

CableTool

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

said by BabyBear:

Dont see how this merger can go thru, if the DirecTV/Dish merger didn't.

If it does, wonder which name they'll keep? XM cause they have more subs?

Im not sure if they have more anymore.. if they do its a small margin Id assume.
quote:
The company reports it has ended 2006 with more than 6 million subscribers. That's an 82% increase over its subscriber base at the end of 2005.
The STERN EFFECT.

Once Stern came on board XM started to slowly stagnate.

bear73
Metnav... Fly The Unfriendly Skies
Premium Member
join:2001-06-09
Derry, NH

bear73

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

the question is, was the market near to saturation when he came on-board?
mikabl
Premium Member
join:2002-09-29
Rockford, IL

mikabl to CableTool

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to CableTool
The Stern effect? Hardly, his show doesn't have the draw it did on the public airwaves.

Tomek
Premium Member
join:2002-01-30
Valley Stream, NY

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to CableTool
I would say car effect.
Now most of the cars have an option to have some sort of satellite radio preinstalled.
Also, if I'm not mistaken, hi-end stereos have XM or sirrus available.
I would consider getting the service if my car had satellite radio.
kruser
Premium Member
join:2002-06-01
Eastern MO

kruser

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

said by Tomek:

I would say car effect.
Now most of the cars have an option to have some sort of satellite radio preinstalled.
Also, if I'm not mistaken, hi-end stereos have XM or sirrus available.
I would consider getting the service if my car had satellite radio.
I bought a Kenwood system with Sirius connections.
I did buy the Sirius receiver and activated it for a month but turned it off when I found it did not have NASCAR race broadcasts.
I emailed Sirius about the lack of NASCAR and they said they would get back to me.
They did keep the promise and the CEO of Sirius emailed me and told me that he'd like to keep me as a customer and then informed me that they struck a deal with NASCAR and would go live in 2007!
This was in 2005 but they kept their word and do now have NASCAR!
I'm not sure if my lone email had anything to do with that but they made me feels as though it did!
Of course I have since switched vehicles and have a factory stereo without a Sirius input so I'm SOL.
I did look and they have tons of in dash replacements at Crutchfield so I may go back to them soon! I can even get an in dash lcd video screen!
Not that I'd want one as I'm generally against driver distractions plus it cost was $1,400 to $2,500!

I did like my Sirius service while I had it however.
No contracts.

RadioDoc

join:2000-05-11
La Grange, IL

RadioDoc to BabyBear

to BabyBear
The proposal is for each XM share to be converted to 4.6 shares of Sirius stock, and since Mel is keeping control the smart money is on XM yielding to the Sirius trade name.

This still has some regulatory hoops to jump through, and the FCC is not going to just rubber stamp it. Both players have outstanding enforcement actions on rule violations, particularly on terrestrial repeaters and locally-inserted content.

keyboard5684
Sam
join:2001-08-01
Pittsburgh, PA

keyboard5684 to BabyBear

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to BabyBear
DirecTV and Dish are content delivery providers, not content providers. The difference is that Directv and Dish are re-broadcasting content already made by someone else.

Radio, Sirius and XM, actually provide there own content. So a merger does not mean a monopoly on Radio, it means more content.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

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said by BabyBear:

Dont see how this merger can go thru, if the DirecTV/Dish merger didn't.
Well I don't think that either compnay was burning through cash like Sirus/XM. What if denying merger mmeans one goes out of business in the next couple of years. How does that help? Then you are still left with one satelite radio company with no competition in the horizon and they would be able to raises rates by however much they felt. At least with a merger the FCC could impose price caps as a condition.

FFH5
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Tavistock NJ

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said by skiguy219:

I thought the FCC was going to say no?
That is still the current thinking. Wall St still is betting this merger will die at the FCC.
Moffett said the deal could have a particularly tough time getting through the FCC, and is likely to opposed by the National Association of Broadcasters, a lobbying group that includes radio broadcasters. Moffett said it was "anyone's guess" as to whether the FCC would change its rule barring a consolidation of the two satellite radio companies.
wev567
join:2006-02-25
Pittsburgh, PA

wev567 to skiguy219

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to skiguy219
said by skiguy219:

I thought the FTC was going to say no?
Not according to Bear Stearns...

»www.businessweek.com/bwd ··· n=search
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

Kearnstd to skiguy219

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to skiguy219
the FCC already lets clearchannel exist why is this any different.

kyramilan
join:2006-11-26
Pensacola, FL

kyramilan to skiguy219

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Hey, now both can pay Howard Stern $250 million a year!

Ummm, doesn't this merger have anti-trust written all over it?

RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
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join:2005-06-18
USA

RideRed

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

Satellite radio has TONS of competition with regular over the air radio.
stufried
Premium Member
join:2003-10-13

stufried

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

You could argue traditional broadcasters and cable broadcasters were competition for XM/Sirius. If you are looking for competition you could always find it. The question is whether the competition is real and serious (no pun intended).

RideRed
Vista needs a popup blocker for Vista
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join:2005-06-18
USA

RideRed

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Re: FTC?

Sirius and XM combined have fewer than 15 million listeners. A single top radio host like Limbaugh, Stern (when he was on the air) or Dr. Laura do better than that.

So I would say yeah, over the air in terms of numbers is kicking the crap out of satellite radio. Of course that didn't stop me from buying 2 Sirius radios (after cancelling XM).

P Ness
You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already
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said by kyramilan:

Hey, now both can pay Howard Stern $250 million a year!

Ummm, doesn't this merger have anti-trust written all over it?
why would it be anti-trust when you HAVE THE ABILITY to get 95% of the content for FREE...well filled with commercials.

YOU can also get the content from, ITunes, Yahoo, Napster for 99 cents a song....

silly that people think so one way instead of thinking about all the possible ways to get the content.

roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA

roamer1

Member

Re: FTC?

said by P Ness:

why would it be anti-trust when you HAVE THE ABILITY to get 95% of the content for FREE...well filled with commercials.
95%? 50% is more like it, and even then only in large radio markets -- there are some genres (electronica, for instance) that are under-represented or not represented at all on terrestrial radio, and a lot of the talk content isn't anywhere to be found either.

-SC

P Ness
You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already
Premium Member
join:2001-08-29
way way out

P Ness

Premium Member

Re: FTC?

said by roamer1:
said by P Ness:

why would it be anti-trust when you HAVE THE ABILITY to get 95% of the content for FREE...well filled with commercials.
95%? 50% is more like it, and even then only in large radio markets -- there are some genres (electronica, for instance) that are under-represented or not represented at all on terrestrial radio, and a lot of the talk content isn't anywhere to be found either.

-SC
you can find 98% of the songs on Itunes right?

Guess what Rush, Hannity, Dr Laura are not avalible on sat, and RUSH has a bigger audience then all of sat radio has subs....so are they a monopoly that needs to be split up? maybe not for the user since its FREE but for the advertising industry that has to do business with these Monopolies?
60632649 (banned)
join:2003-09-29
New York, NY

60632649 (banned)

Member

Re: FTC?

Hannity and laura are parrots. That's why they're on after Rush. If they were on before, they'd have nothing to say.
60632649

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to skiguy219
Wow, big dudes in corporations, who have to keep things secret, instead of saying no comment, make up some lie...

Where's the news?

The news should be... Are the borders of the USA going to be properly protected, and when? Congress has had plenty of time to deal with this but they continually fail to do so.

Maybe there's some scary chicken flu at your door?

hahaha!

P Ness
You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already
Premium Member
join:2001-08-29
way way out

P Ness

Premium Member

BaBABooie

Stern FTW

i hope the FCC does not give some lame excuse to not let this happen, while they let ATT own everything again.

i would love 50 more channels

rideboarder
welcome to the social
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join:2003-07-28
Snohomish, WA

rideboarder

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Re: BaBABooie

said by P Ness:

i would love 50 more channels
while you'll end up paying twice as much.

brooklynman4
join:2004-09-07
Brewster, NY

brooklynman4

Member

Re: BaBABooie

I think its due to direct tv launching there own music channels.

mikedz4
join:2003-04-14
Weirton, WV

mikedz4

Member

Re: BaBABooie

said by brooklynman4:

I think its due to direct tv launching there own music channels.
When did directv launch their own music channels? I have directv and they have XM as their music channels unless it changed overnight.

You can reply via pm or email since this thread is getting over 200 posts already and I'll lose my place.

insomniac84
join:2002-01-03
Schererville, IN

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to rideboarder
Probably even more than double. You will probably get a basic package for 20 bucks and it will cost 5-10 a month extra for each sport you want. Then another 5-10 for whatever stations they label premium. Then another 5-10 to get commercial free versions. XM-Sirius is going to have a field day.

•••••

bpx
join:2003-01-25
Saint Augustine, FL

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I will dump it if that is the case. I already own 3 xm radios and only listen to maybe 6 or 7 channels on a regular basis. It is a great concept, but only at the rate that they charge right now, IMO.

e_dub
franknbeans
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join:2001-08-12
kickin ass

e_dub to P Ness

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to P Ness
said by P Ness:



i would love 50 more channels
I like the announcement, but I think there will be major opposition from everywhere. Mainly from the major radio station owners.

Also, i don't see 50 more channels, I see a lot of similar channels competing to stay alive.

jjsk8r85
join:2005-02-17
Belleville, MI

jjsk8r85 to P Ness

Member

to P Ness
you won't get 50 more channels. neither xm or sirius has any more bandwidth to work with. they already have 842589237059 channels crammed into such a small bandwidth, they all sound like garbage because they're compressed like a cellphone ringtone, however, I still subscribe to sirius because I like some of the music they play, and it comes in handy sometimes.

P Ness
You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already
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join:2001-08-29
way way out

P Ness

Premium Member

Re: BaBABooie

said by jjsk8r85:

you won't get 50 more channels. neither xm or sirius has any more bandwidth to work with. they already have 842589237059 channels crammed into such a small bandwidth, they all sound like garbage because they're compressed like a cellphone ringtone, however, I still subscribe to sirius because I like some of the music they play, and it comes in handy sometimes.
umm if they merge you can guess that you are going to get new recievers that work with both programs.

the bandwith crunch is due to the spectrum that they both have acess too. one combined company will have acess to the FULL spectrum, thus you could double the output under one brand...now i dont expect you will see 250 channels but you should get 50 more for about the same price

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

2 edits

FFH5

Premium Member

Press Release; will merger orphan either XM or Sirius radios

»investor.sirius.com/rele ··· d=230306

My question would be about usage and not about the financial details.

Will both sets of existing Sirius & XM radios continue to work after a merger would be completed? Or will the combined company orphan 1 whole set of client radios and settle on either XM or Sirius radios going forward?

•••••••••

adisor19
join:2004-10-11

1 recommendation

adisor19

Member

WOW

During the Bush aka Republican aka conservative administration, there has beeen so many anti consumer mergers and buy outs that boggles the mind. I can't believe they are allowing a MONOPOLY to form in the sattelite Radio. This is beyond sad.. this is a DARK day for the american consumer and i'm sure it will have repercusions in Canada as well since the companies had some deals to be allowed to broadcast in Canada.

Adi

••••••••••••••••••

DaveDude
No Fear
join:1999-09-01
New Jersey

DaveDude

Member

Why not just let them all merge

I am against this, so basicly one company, clear channel will have a single nationwide market. So can all the FM stations merge too with a single owner ?

••••

n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY

n2jtx

Member

SiriuX?

Wonder what they will call it. SiriuX, SuX, Xirius, XiriuM? The possibilities are interesting.

Also, who is the dominant player in this merger?

•••••

texans20
Premium Member
join:2002-09-28
Texas!

texans20

Premium Member

In other news...

AT&T agrees to buy SiriXM.

•••

nixen
Rockin' the Boxen
Premium Member
join:2002-10-04
Alexandria, VA

nixen

Premium Member

Oh Crap...

Wonder what this means for legacy equipment? I can't see orphaning XM hardware, given that they offer more services beyond just music. Then again, maybe they'd be looking to get rid of traffic and other non "core" services? I'll be pissed if XM-Traffic goes away: it's the only damned reason I bought my Garmin GPS in the first place.

-tom

minidu
Premium Member
join:2002-09-28
Cheboygan, MI

minidu

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Re: Oh Crap...

Parsons and Sirius Chief Executive Mel Karmazin told Reuters in a joint phone interview that they hope to meet "shortly" with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to seek regulatory approval for their merger.

The executives also said they will continue to support radio devices offered by both companies while working on a new device that will work on both satellite radio services.

From an article online. Looks to me like the equipment will all stay, and they won't make a huge change for a while. Eventually letting you have both.
ke4pym
Premium Member
join:2004-07-24
Charlotte, NC

ke4pym

Premium Member

This is

going to be a bigger mistake than letting AT&T have Bellsouth.

It is going to suck.

NEP1611
join:2002-03-27
Northford, CT

NEP1611

Member

Re: This is

said by ke4pym:

going to be a bigger mistake than letting AT&T have Bellsouth.

It is going to suck.
As Davy Jones would say, "Don't get your knickers in a twist". This merger is never gonna happen. Back in '02 DirecTV and EchoStar tried to merge using pretty much the exact same arguments, and it wound up not happening. And neither is this.

As if that wasn't enough, the GOP was more prominent at the FCC that time. What is it going to be like now, when the Blue Dogs are barking a bit louder and feeling it a bit more?

inteller
Sociopaths always win.
join:2003-12-08
Tulsa, OK

inteller

Member

using ATT logic...

I'm sure they will say that the combined company will still leave plenty of competition with HD Radio and FM/AM.

once again, pigs will fly out of someone's ass and this "merger of evils equals" will allowed to be pushed through.

They already engage in an oligopoly, so its not like it makes much difference.

•••••
bogey7806
join:2004-03-19
Here

bogey7806

Member

:(

Without a competitor Mel will most certainly add advertisements and jack up the rate. I guess I can turn my new XM into an exclusively MP3 player.


MooJohn
join:2005-12-18
Milledgeville, GA

MooJohn

Member

Like this is supposed to be a good thing

I chose Sirius over XM for a reason. More than 6 million other people came to the same conclusion. I don't want XM rammed down my throat now.

XM still has the nerve to put commercials in something customers are already paying for. No thanks!

If the new company changes the lineup I've grown to like, I'll can my subscriptions and stick with my massive library of existing music. I hate music after around 1995 or so anyway, so I don't give a squat about new releases.

•••••••••••••••
nathill
join:2004-05-03
Bloomington, IN

nathill

Member

Competition?

I guess if one accepts the premise that all radio waves are created equal, there will be competition (FM, "high def" radio).
But with ONE satellite company, how can customers possibly benefit?
I already subscribe to both services. Any bets on which direction my total bill will go in the future?

••••
Mechano
join:2004-05-30
Antarctica

Mechano

Member

Sirius & XM to Merge

This will also hit the car manufacturers that offer radios with either one, or the other. For the consumer, buying anything with a satellite radio now, and pay for it, it would be a waste of money.

thingwillbefine
@speakeasy.net

thingwillbefine

Anon

You guys worry too much

Neither companies can survive alone. Look at the financials of both, they have so much debt on their hands! So they have to merge to live.

I love my Sirius and before that I was with XM for two years. If they merge, I will be OK with that. They have too much to loose by pissing of their current customers.

I also think that they will run the systems in parallel for probably 5-10 years and just broadcast same content over two systems. This would not be the first time tech companies figure out how to make two technologies work together.

roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA

roamer1

Member

Re: You guys worry too much

said by thingwillbefine :

This would not be the first time tech companies figure out how to make two technologies work together.
*cough*Sprint Nextel*cough*

Combining Sirius and XM will be nearly the same massive undertaking that combining DirecTV and Dish would have been if they had been allowed to merge, as while both are in the same general frequency bands, the similarities between the two technology-wise largely end there.

-SC
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

Next merger?

Who wants to bet on the next merger?

Time Warner and Comcast?

Time Warner and Charter?

Time Warner & RCN?

Comcast & RCN?

TWC & Cablevision?

Cablevision and RCN? or

Comcast and RCN?

••••

Lone Wolf
Retired
Premium Member
join:2001-12-30
USA

Lone Wolf

Premium Member

From two to one, Then There Are None

I couldn't understand how 2 pay radio
stations lasted as long as they did.

It's just a matter of time before
there are none.

ReVeLaTeD
Premium Member
join:2001-11-10
San Diego, CA

ReVeLaTeD

Premium Member

Re: From two to one, Then There Are None

Is that all satellite has to offer? ad-free radio? I mean, yeah that's all good and stuff, but I don't listen to radio at all because of the quality of the music played. Could care less about ads, I want them to play quality music, and they don't.

So satellite doesn't offer that? Just ad free tunes and broadcasts? If so I know what I'll be passing on next time I buy a car.
caco
Premium Member
join:2005-03-10
Whittier, AK

1 edit

caco

Premium Member

Don't see what the big deal is.

Last time I checked you can still listen to ad based radio for free. No one is forced to get XM or Sirius.

Both these companies are losing money like crazy and an argument could be made that one of these companies would go bankrupt if things didn't improve. This merger is a plus for satellite radio.
spk0379
join:2006-09-02
Orlando, FL

spk0379

Member

Re: Don't see what the big deal is.

you sure can listen to ad based radio. and that is all you will hear , ads. Its sickening what the communications monopolies have done with radio to pinch every last sent of profit out. complete garbage.

digiblur
Premium Member
join:2002-06-03
Louisiana

digiblur

Premium Member

Wonderful....

I can see XM running the Sirius lineup into the ground just like theirs! Great...

Guess I better get my fill on Octane, Lithium, HairNation, and BTLS while I can.

••••

JamesPC
join:2005-10-12
Orange, CA

JamesPC

Member

who cares...we have sirius

i dont care...i have sirius...I bet all the XM people are happy about this.

•••••••••••
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