Xm - Idolator

Posts Tagged “Xm”

Maybe I Picked The Wrong Time To Pay For A Year Of Sirius

While the conglomerations behind terrestrial radio stations do their best to stop the proposed XM/Sirius merger, the still-separate satellite radio providers look they might be in a bit of financial trouble.

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The Justice Department has cleared the merger between satellite-radio companies Sirius and XM, one year after the deal's initial proposal. The next hurdle for the merger: the Federal Communications Commission, who probably won't rule against the Justice Department's approval but who may take radio behemoth Clear Channel's "suggestions" about making the satellite playing field more level for competitors... like, say, Clear Channel, whose efforts to make listeners care about its own version of an "enhanced" spectrum, HD Radio," have ranged from laughable to completely skippable during drive-time dial flipping. [WSJ]

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the biz

Clear Channel Will Stop You From Enjoying Radio In Any Form

While it's interesting than anyone would care what Clear Channel thinks of the prospective XM/Sirius satellite radio merger, Mel Karmazin and his posse have weighed in with the FCC with their take on the whole matter. As experts on radio monopolies, it makes sense to consult Clear Channel, a company deeply concerned that any satellite radio consolidation might harm "preservation of a viable, locally-oriented, free, over-the-air radio broadcast system" full of morning zoos, a KISS-FM in every market, and the most limited playlists imaginable. More »

4:30 PM on Mon Mar 17 2008
By Dan Gibson
624 views, 4 comments

Latest by Oldboy: Clear Channel has got to be kidding.... more »

satellite radio

XM And Sirius Dancing As Fast As They Can

Satellite-radio companies Sirius and XM, who are hoping to speed their path toward merging, announced yesterday that they'd allow customers to buy their programming a la carte through two plans: the first plan, which would cost $6.99 a month, would allow listeners to subscribe to 50 "nonpremium" (read: music and talk radio) channels, with a 25-cents-per-channel overage fee, while the second plan would cost $14.99 a month and allow users to subscribe to "premium" services (baseball, football, and we're guessing Howard Stern). More »

12:00 PM on Tue Jul 24 2007
By mjohnston
604 views, 9 comments

Latest by baconfat: Sirius is introducing backseat video this fall. It'll only be kids programming to begin with, though. more »

liner notes

Piano Man To Perez Hilton: That's Quite The Glass House You're Living In

- If Billy Joel and his daughter can bring down Perez Hilton's shitshow, we will never, ever complain about any part of his catalog again—even "We Didn't Start The Fire." [Fresh Intelligence]
- Citing concerns about the Sirius-XM merger, car-sharing company Zipcar has decided to pull XM from its vehicles. Given that the merger is way off if it does happen, doesn't this excuse seem a little fishy? [FishbowlDC]
- R. Kelly has written an inspirational song for the Virginia Tech community, with all proceeds going to the school's memorial fund. No word on whether he's also planning to auction off his Star Wars-inspired shades. [BBC]

2:10 PM on Wed May 2 2007
By mjohnston
620 views, 9 comments

Latest by Diglett: I got that zipcar email yesterday and I didn't buy that explanation either (I'm a member even though I own a car because I have to get that IKEA furniture home somehow). more »

U.S. Government Finally Makes Richard Simmons-Bob Dylan Connection

U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) brings his best third-grade visual-aid skills to Capitol Hill yesterday, where the Senate heard testimony regarding the XM-Sirius Deal. Note that Jimmy Buffett gets higher billing than Bill Bradley, which actually makes sense. More »

4:30 PM on Wed Apr 18 2007
By Brian Raftery
257 views, 6 comments

radio

The Sirius-XM Merger: It May Make Terrestrial Radio Slightly Less Sucky

The Wall Street Journal's Lee Gomes has a column today that lands squarely on the side of the XM-Sirius merger, and while we're not wholly convinced, we're intrigued by Gomes' closing rationale as to why he's in its favor:

Still, there is a reason to root for a merger, and it involves the group most actively opposing it: the broadcast lobby. When XM and Sirius made their announcement, a spokesman for broadcasters said the satellite-radio companies were looking for a "government bailout."

But this argument is from the possessors of one of Washington's most potent lobbying forces. If any group is skilled in the ways of governmental largess, it's broadcasters.

If you fret about diminished choices with a joined Sirius and XM, think for a second about commercial radio in the U.S. Its ownership is highly concentrated, its programming is most commonly described as "soulless" and it is missing most of the public-interest programming we used to take for granted.

5:54 PM on Wed Mar 28 2007
By mjohnston
598 views, 5 comments

Latest by Mick Kraut: As an XM subscriber I am very pleased with my music and sports options...You simply hear many things you never are going to hear on terrestrial radio... Willie's Place Lucy, Fred and Ethel 80s on 8 90s on 9 MLB game broadcasts Nowhere on my terrestrial more »

Today In Music Business Lawsuits: Music Publishers Give XM Static

The National Music Publishers Association has sued XM Radio, saying that the satellite-radio company illegally reproduced and distributed copyrighted music through its XMP3 players, which allow subscribers to capture songs they're listening to for future listening: More »

10:35 AM on Fri Mar 23 2007
By mjohnston
275 views, 1 comment

liner notes

Liner Notes: Beastie Boys Still Shaking Their Rumps

- The Beastie Boys' new album, tentatively titled Puttin' It Tibet, could be out as early as this summer. [Billboard]
- Michael Jackson is in Japan, where he'll be meeting with fans, and seeking financial advice from a team of bichon frise puppies. [NME]
- Former Attorney General (and noted songbird) John Ashcroft was a big fan of the XM/Sirius merger—until he realized he could make more money by being against the XM/Sirius merger. [WSJ]

12:51 PM on Mon Mar 5 2007
By Brian Raftery
155 views, Comment

satellite radio

Satellite Radio's Music Channels Slightly Less Compelling Than Stern, C-Span

Eliot Van Buskirk of Wired's Listening Post blog is at the Digital Music Forum East this week, and he noted a somewhat odd statistic: More »

12:38 PM on Wed Feb 28 2007
By mjohnston
362 views, 4 comments

Satellite-Radio Merger Might Require Some Obscene New Rules

Numerous questions remain about the just-proposed union between XM and Sirius, including: Will the FCC see the newly formed company as a monopoly? What will happen to their combined staff? And, most importantly, how will this affect Ludacris? More »

11:00 AM on Wed Feb 21 2007
By Brian Raftery
335 views, 4 comments

Satellite-Radio Merger Faces Some Sirius Hurdles

The proposed XM-Sirius merger was only announced yesterday, and it's already drawing criticism from regulators and legislators, many of whom worry that the union would effectively create a satellite-radio monopoly (which may be why the FCC banned such a deal in 1997). And while it's likely going to take more than a year to iron the deal out—the companies have set next March as a do-or-die deadline—there's already speculation as to how the potential pairing could affect customers, according to the Wall Street Journal: More »

8:45 AM on Tue Feb 20 2007
By Brian Raftery
223 views, 5 comments

Latest by Mick Kraut: How many channels playing "classic alternative rock" does the world need...XM has at least 3 of them that I have found thus far... THe only upside to this deal is the possibilty of a steel cage death match between O&A and more »

liner notes

Liner Notes: Did Britney Spears Do Anything Interesting Over The Weekend?

- The Carol Channing revival starts right here, right now. [Thisislondon.co.uk]
- Experts believe that Sirius and XM are finally going to announce their merger today, but you won't be able to hear about it unless you stand in one spot in a major metropolitan area and keep perfectly still. [NY Post]
- Give Paul Weller credit: The guy may be nostalgia-tripping like crazy, but at least he keeps it real and insists on still hating his old bandmates. [Billboard]

11:59 AM on Mon Feb 19 2007
By Brian Raftery
139 views, 4 comments

Latest by Breliant: When The Jam split Weller said he didn't want it to mean nothing. They were a kids band and the older he became the less relevant they'd be. The Police reforming will no doubt strengthen his opinion. For the longest time he more »

Judge Remains Unconvinced By Satellite Radio Ga-Ga

This just in, from the exciting, traffic-spurring world of ongoing digital-music lawsuits: More »

"In Rainbows" Turns One: Where Are We Now?

Posts Tagged “Xm”