XM, Sirius merger pending, media battle ready

Pretty well written and balanced in the opinion of a guy that has followed satrad for 9 years. Good job!

However, you excuse the incompetence of the FCC by suggesting that this is a tough decision. 465 days have passed Bucko. Oil merger are done in < 180. What's really held up this deal is the Commissioners self serving (appointment) interests and NAB money that made the halls of the FCC and mostly Congress very slippery.

Love satrad?.. then remember who opposed this. Brownback, Leahy, Kerry, and Dorgan. As for the Nab, they yell "Foul" while thy fail to pay performer royalty while Sirius and XM shells out 6 - 8 % of revenues!

anybody can make their own music radio station with an ipod and an ipod speaker system. and no commercials either. in the near future almost all commercial radio stations will be talk or news.

"Consumers know just how much to trust the companies' promises that prices will stay low and programming will remain diverse."
Don't you think consumers would stop paying for the service if the company's prices become too high, or the programming too stale?
C'mon, it's called free market capitalism! And the government should keep it's greedy little hands out of it.

LET THEM MERGE!!!! This is the most ridiculous waste of taxpayers money that exists today, relating to the FCC. I am SICK of the NAD, and David Rehr. It's over Mr Rehr. Embrace the change and move on. The vast majority of consumers want this merger.

SIRI & XM agreed not to merge when they started...now, because they give MILLIONS to no-talents like Stern et al & MILLIONS in bonus $ to Karmarzin..they cant TURN A PROFIT...so CHANGE the rules they already agreed to?

2 flea-bitten media plays that have NEVER EVER turned a profit...

Free Market? Would you also agree then that the local limits should be taken off terrestrail ownership? The largest radio broadcast company owns less than 8% of the AM and FM bands combined.
That would sound like a fair deal.

Here we go again. More talking points for the NAB. Same old arguments on why this won't work, ect.
Let's get the merger over and see who is best and who will survive. Not only will it make it, but it will finally turn a profit within two years on surging numbers and more choices.

PLOWBOY IS EVERYWHERE!!! See ya at Ryan's place! LOL!

Let the merge and decide already. in 1997, it would have been a monopoly, when terrestrial radio was the only competitor. Now, i know personally, that people have stood at the audio section in a store and have had to decide, Satellite Radio, or Ipod. The marketplace has changed, and XM and Sirius hardly think about competing against eachother, but rather how to just attract listener so Satellite radio.

Going to the Big O now Max!
Orbitcast.... the only name you need to know for Satrad!

Kevin, you don't think XM and Sirius "compete" against each other? Have you paid attention to the talent bidding?

If the merger is allowed that negotiating power talent currently has is G O N E. It's the talent that will get hurt first then the listeners. Checked your cable bill lately?

Marc most be one of dumbest humans on the planet and probably has a financial interest in "regular radio". No comptent human would ever oppose this merger. Let's discuss the worst case scenario, the day after a merger they raise prices $15 a month and they add commercials to the music channels. Oh no what is a comptent human to do. CANCEL THEIR SERVICE. No one needs satelitte radio, it is as simple as turning it off, canceling the plan. Their is no danager to consumers. Oh and by the way I am willing to bet the company would have no interest in raising prices and driveing customers away. I would like for someone to explain how they would be a monopoly am I not able to go listen to free radio. I would call that a competitor. Or my friend who refuses to get satelitte radio because he only listens to his ipod in the car, would that not be competition. This merger should have been approved months ago but our government and its agencies are not run by the people but by corporate america.

This merger should be allowed. The FCC is making a mockery of what government's role should be. Do what is right for the consumer - do what is right for the investor and get on with it. As for the interest of the talent - they will get what the market gives them just like the rest of us.

I believe the merger is the only thing that'll save satellite radio and it's worth saving; if only as another form of competition for terrestrial radio.

There is no reason for the two satellite radio providers to compete between themselves, creating inefficiencies, when their primary competition comes from myriad sources. I'm also not sure that I agree with the stance that a combined company will be "fat and sated". The combined company will face an uphill and competitive battle to increase it's audience; I think that'll be more than enough incentive to fulfill promises and commitments.

We'll see, though.

So the investors are more important than the talent?

I dont want to pay another $12.99 to activate my wife's XM in her car. LET THEM MERGE ALREADY FCC!

Three words...Rule Of Law

The author states
"Once Internet radio is available simply and cheaply in Americans' cars, offering an infinite universe of audio programming, why would consumers want to buy a separate radio, antenna and wiring to pull in XM-Sirius?"

This is horrible logic! What hardware is available in cars NOW that lets you use internet radio? NONE! so by the time internet radio is available "simply and cheaply" don't you think satellite radio will be the same.(in most cars it already is)

nab faggort

FIREBIRD SAYS:
"because they give MILLIONS to no-talents like Stern et "
If Stern is a no talent, Why does he have millions of more fans than anybody else ever in Radio? And find out how much money in advertising revenue has been lost on FM stations that he was syndicated on for more than 20 years. Nobody has ever had the impact in radio of Howard Stern, and nobody we ever come close to what he has done.