MISC
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July 30, 2008, 11:59 PM
Filed under: MISC | Tags: Federal Communications Commission, Gary Parsons, Kevin Martin, Mel Karmazin, Satellite radio, Sirius Satellite Radio, Sirius XM Radio Inc, XM Satellite Radio
Filed under: MISC | Tags: Federal Communications Commission, Gary Parsons, Kevin Martin, Mel Karmazin, Satellite radio, Sirius Satellite Radio, Sirius XM Radio Inc, XM Satellite Radio
After nearly a year and a half of regulatory debate, the Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio merger was finally approved. Sirius XM says the new company will embrace an “a la carte” programming strategy, (Kevin Martin‘s long enduring dream for the cable industry), allowing consumers to mix and match which channels they like instead of forcing them to pay for shows they’re not interested in. The company will be based in New York with Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin serving as CEO and XM Chairman Gary Parsons taking the role of Chairman. (Cynopsis 7/30)
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We’ve noted a few key differences. “A la carte” won’t be available for a year and will require new radio equipment. Your option is customizable 50-channel bundles rather than some form of true a la carte, purchased one channel at a time. XM-Siruis own most of their own programming, as opposed to cable operators. Satellite radio doesn’t depend on advertising revenue, as most cable programming does. Satellite radio programming costs much less than cable television programming to produce and thus has a lower overhead. The cost of creating additional satellite radio channels is marginal.
But, you know, aside from that…
Comment by CableTechTalk July 31, 2008 @ 9:30 AM