Update on Satellite Radio

I continue to follow with great interest, the comings and goings of the two satellite radio companies, XM Radio and Sirius. As I have written here before, I'm leaning toward becoming a subscriber, but have been too busy with other things to focus on it. But, I still like to keep current. I thought I would pass along some updates and links to a few articles that will also keep you up-to-date.

Satellite radio is starting to grow by leaps and bounds. XM Satellite Radio reports that in the first quarter of this year, they signed up over 540,000 new subscribers. This brings their subscriber base up to 3.8 million. According to Wall Street, XM needs to hit 4.5 million users before they start to turn a profit. Sirius subscribers number around 1.2 million.

Many of both company's new subscribers come as a direct result of the company's deals with new car manufacturers. According to car dealers, new car buyers are becoming enamored of having commercial free, satellite radio in their new cars.

Both Sirius and XM continue to wheel and deal with new business deals. Some time ago, Sirius signed a deal with DishTV to add many of their stations to the satellite TV company's offerings. Recently, XM completed a contract with AOL to create a online radio service that will go into operation this summer with the launch of the new AOL.com

Meanwhile, both companies continue to look for new opportunities to spread their wares via new and existing technologies. For instance, XM says they will soon be able to offer a "wearable device" as well as adding satellite radio to DVD players and clock radios.

The most informative article I've read recently was in the New York Times. Their in-depth article focuses on how satellite radio is forcing changes in AM and FM radio stations.

After the FCC changed their regulations to allow giant corporations to buy up radio stations, the airwaves began changing for the worst. The number of commercials per hour increased to ungodly proportions and the music playlists became so vanilla and so limited that a great deal of new music was not being heard. People began looking for alternatives and found it in commercial-free satellite radio with lots of musical choices.

Now, AM and FM stations are having to make some changes. Commercial times are starting to be cut and providers are starting to change their playlists. They are also looking at additional services to keep their audiences like offering musical downloads via the Internet.

The final chapter of this saga is many years away from being written. But, the intense rivalry, not only between XM and Sirius, but between satellite radio and AM/FM radio will only continue to heat up. This, of course, means new technologies and new innovations. It is fun to watch.