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XM Sirius announces SkyDock for iPhone and iPod touch
As Sirius XM fanboys are well aware, the company is expected to debut its XM SkyDock satellite radio controller for iPhone / iPod touch at a press event this week. Now, along with spy shots dug up by the satellite radio hounds at Orbitcast, we have some press photos (below) and some PR for you (after the break) with the official details. Compatible with the first and second gen iPod touch as well as iPhone / iPhone 3G / iPhone 3GS with OS 3.0, this guy is hitting the shelves this fall for an MSRP of $119.99. Read - Pics: New XM SkyDock satellite radio controller for iPhone Read - Stern Fans Rejoice: Sirius XM SkyDock for iPhone
Sirius XM announces SkyDock for iPhone and iPod touch
As Sirius XM fanboys are well aware, the company is expected to debut its XM SkyDock satellite radio controller for iPhone / iPod touch at a press event this week. Now, along with spy shots dug up by the satellite radio hounds at Orbitcast, we have some press photos (below) and some PR for you (after the break) with the official details. Compatible with the first and second gen iPod touch as well as iPhone / iPhone 3G / iPhone 3GS with OS 3.0, this guy is hitting the shelves this fall for an MSRP of $119.99. Read - Pics: New XM SkyDock satellite radio controller for iPhone Read - Stern Fans Rejoice: Sirius XM SkyDock for iPhone
Sirius XM in bailout talks with DirecTV
Safe to say that satellite radio is far down the list of priorities for Uncle Sam's bailout bucks, so Sirius XM CEO Mel Karmazin pounded some pavement today, hitting up DirecTV and its parent company Liberty Media to try and save his bankrupted radio hydra. Apparently Smelly Melly isn't as hot for EchoStar owner Charles Ergan to buy Sirius XM out as was previously rumored, but there's a showdown brewing: Ergan's been busy taking control of Sirius XM's debt, so any deal with Liberty / DirecTV would result in feuding ownership interests. Making things even more interesting, it sounds like Ergan and Karmazin don't really get along, so this deal with DirecTV is basically his last shot at keeping his job. Desperate men do desperate things -- we'll see how this one shakes out. Read - Reuters Read - NYT
XM and Sirius channels merge at long last
It's been a long, long time coming but the once separate XM and Sirius universes are now finally, officially intermingling, resulting in some new channels, some renamed channels, some moved channels, and no doubt quite a bit of confusion for satellite radio listeners. The short of it is that XM users can expect to find 22 new channels, while Sirius listeners get 11 (mostly music channels), with a whole slew of other channels either moved, renamed, or both. Dig into the links below for the complete details, and expect to wait two to five minutes to receive the update if you haven't already turned on your radio today.Read - XM Satellite Radio New Channel LineupRead - Sirius Satellite Radio New Channel Lineup
Karmazin promises interoperable Sirius / XM radios in less than 9 months
While the newly formed Sirius XM Radio has already promised the FCC that it'll deliver interoperable radios within nine months, CEO Mel Karmazin has now told investors that they can "assume" that the radios will actually be available "a number of months sooner" than that. Karmazin added, however, that we shouldn't expect them quite as soon as this holiday season, which nicely lines up for a debut at CES in January and an actual release shortly thereafter in the first quarter of the year. Unfortunately, Karmazin didn't spill any details on said radios, with him only going so far as to describe them as "very cool."[Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons]
FCC tentatively approves XM / Sirius merger
We basically knew the FCC was going to approve the XM / Sirius merger after the DoJ approved it earlier this year, and it looks like the communications agency is just about ready to sign off -- the Wall Street Journal is reporting that a majority of FCC commissioners are close to approving the deal. Word is that XM and Sirius will have to fork over an additional $20M to make it happen and agree to several enforcement terms, but it's all up in the air until this goes official. Let's hope that's soon -- after a historically long delay, it looks like there's finally some light at the end of the tunnel.[Warning: Read link requires subscription]
Sirius, XM reps chat up FCC, post-merger pricing detailed
With that little Department of Justice business out of their way, Sirius and XM have unsurprisingly been quick to start chatting up the all-important FCC, and a recent filing from the agency has now revealed that lawyers from the two companies have met with none other than FCC Chairman Kevin Martin himself, along with other higher-ups. Even more interesting, however, is that the same filing also includes a full rundown of the companies' proposed post-merger pricing plans, which don't appear to have changed much from those detailed way back in the early days of the merger. Starting with the basics, the Sirius and XM "Everything" plans will hang on to the same $12.95 per month price tag, and include approximately 130 and 170 channels, respectively. From there, each service has A La Carte options starting at $6.99 a month (with additional channels costing 25 cents apiece), along with the usual package options ranging in price from $9.99 for the Mostly Music and News, Sports and Talk bundles to $16.99 for the "Sirius Everything & Select XM" or "XM Everytyhing & Select Sirius" packages. Be sure to hit up the PDF available at the link below for the complete rundown.
NAB, Congress react to merger approval; XM and Sirius let haters hate, watch money pile up
Well, it's only been a couple hours since the DOJ officially approved the XM / Sirius merger, and while we're a little surprised at how low-profile the two satellite radio services are being about the decision, there's nothing at all shocking about NAB's reaction -- the organization says it's "astonished," and that the Justice Department's decision to "propose granting a monopoly" to the two companies is "breathtaking." Yeah, they're not happy. Same goes for various members of Congress: Rep. Ed Markey, head of the House telecom subcommittee, expressed his disappointment that "the Bush administration has apparently never seen a telecommunications merger it didn't like," and suggested FCC approval would have to come with strict conditions, while Sen. Herb Kohl flatly said the deal would "create a satellite radio monopoly" and encouraged the FCC to block it. That's a lot of haterade -- but XM and Sirius are apparently too busy looking deeply into each other's eyes as their respective stock prices soar, because the only post-decision statement either company has made is a rehash of a months-old list of organizations and people that support the merger. Ah, young love -- so innocent, so oblivious.Read - NAB statementRead - Bloomberg article with Congressional reactionRead - XM list of supporters
XM / Sirius merger approved!
Looks like that seemingly-desperate two month extension XM and Sirius gave each on the merger agreement paid off after all -- federal regulators have finally approved the $5B deal. The Department of Justice's Antitrust Division says that after "thorough and careful review" (we'll say -- it's been over a year), it's determined that allowing the two satellite radio companies to merge "is not likely to harm consumers." The deciding factor appeared to be the proprietary hardware needed to receive both XM and Sirius; since consumers who shell out aren't likely to switch, the DOJ doesn't think the marketplace is all that competitive to begin with, which makes the impact of a merger relatively small. In fact, the DOJ says the merger could actually benefit consumers, who might see lower prices as the result of more efficient operations, broader programming options, and faster rollouts of new technology. Of course, it's not quite all over yet -- the FCC's approval is yet to come following its own historic delay and NAB's rabble-rousing, but most analysts say the FCC will follow the Justice Department's lead and approve the merger as well. Now the big question: will consumers be able to use their existing radios to get all the stations or not? We'll let you know -- we're trying to find out all we can. Entire official DOJ statement after the break.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
