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XM Radio Stations: Commercial Free Portable Satellite Radio
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Published: February 28, 2007
The age of digital radio is coming sooner rather than later. The current leader in the battle for digital listeners is XM satellite radio. While satellite radio obviously doesn't have the listener base that terrestrial radio does, there is a definite shift in the public towards accepting newer products like Sirius and XM satellite radio.
With XM Radio stations including around the clock news and sports coverage, genre specific music channels, and commercial free radio, it's not surprising that XM radio stations have jumped in popularity over the past few years.
XM satellite radio was conceptualized in 1992 and introduced in 1999. It features 170 XM Radio stations available by physical receivers and over the Internet, with commercial free radio across the 48 contiguous states. XM radio stations are provided to customers via four satellites that receive and transmit broadband digital radio signals.
While XM radio stations are completely commercial free radio, that doesn't mean there aren't fees associated with it. XM currently sells monthly service plans for their XM radio stations starting at $12.95, and the receivers from $60 for a handheld portable satellite radio to $300 for a tabletop model. By far the most popular model is the car mounted portable satellite radio, which retails for about $150. XM radio stations currently claim about 9 million subscribers.
XM radio stations differ from Sirius mostly in regards to content. While Sirius features the NFL, NASCAR, and Howard Stern, XM radio stations skew more traditionally. XM radio stations include programming by Oprah Winfrey, Tony Kornheiser, Major League Baseball and Bob Dillon. That is not to say that the 107 XM radio stations are completely devoid of more cutting edge humor and programming. Among the XM radio stations offered, one of the most popular is the very Stern like Opie and Anthony, who draw in the more cheap and crude humor oriented crowd.
XM satellite radio is currently the most profitable of the next generation radio services. While HD radio struggles to gain a foothold and Sirius tries to ride out the wave of Howard Stern and NFL listeners, XM satellite radio expects to make around $1 billion in subscription revenue in the coming year. Subscription rates are growing exponentially, with expectations that close to 2 million new subscribers will join their network in 2007.
Still, XM satellite radio suffers from many of same problems that its competitors are facing. The cost of running a satellite network on a subscription base, even with a billion dollars in revenue, is immense. To help eliminate their financial woes and ensure stability in the satellite radio market, XM satellite radio is currently in talks to merge with their chief competitor Sirius. While there are significant legal hurdles to this merger, it appears that it will be allowed towards the end of 2007. This combined service with all major professional sports, diverse talk , and music programming might be enough to make satellite the standard bearer for broadcast radio.
For now though, XM satellite radio is a remarkably stable service on the frontier of a media revolution. 2007 will be a pivotal turning point in whether or not HD, Sirius, or XM satellite radio stations sink or swim on this ever changing landscape. While the public at large has been relatively slow to accept changes to the classic radio format in the past, the upgrades offered by XM radio stations, especially after the merger, might just be too much for consumers to pass up.
Sources:
XM Corporate Information. XM Satellite Radio. 2001-2007. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://www.xmradio.com/about/corporate-informa tion.xmc>.
XM Satellite Radio Guidance for 2007. Orbit Cast. 26 Feb. 2007. 27 Feb. 2007 http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/xm-satellite-rad ios-guidance-for-2007.html>.
McCarthy, Michael. “Satellite Radio a Tough Sell.” USA Today. 7 Oct. 2004. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/gear/ent ertainment/2004-10-06-radio-compare_x.htm>.
Scherer, Chris. “Sirius and XM Plan to Merge.” Radio Magazine. 19 Feb. 2007. Prism Business Media, Inc. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://beradio.com/news/sirius_xm_merge/index. html?cid=topstory021907>.
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XM satellite radio was conceptualized in 1992 and introduced in 1999. It features 170 XM Radio stations available by physical receivers and over the Internet, with commercial free radio across the 48 contiguous states. XM radio stations are provided to customers via four satellites that receive and transmit broadband digital radio signals.
While XM radio stations are completely commercial free radio, that doesn't mean there aren't fees associated with it. XM currently sells monthly service plans for their XM radio stations starting at $12.95, and the receivers from $60 for a handheld portable satellite radio to $300 for a tabletop model. By far the most popular model is the car mounted portable satellite radio, which retails for about $150. XM radio stations currently claim about 9 million subscribers.
XM radio stations differ from Sirius mostly in regards to content. While Sirius features the NFL, NASCAR, and Howard Stern, XM radio stations skew more traditionally. XM radio stations include programming by Oprah Winfrey, Tony Kornheiser, Major League Baseball and Bob Dillon. That is not to say that the 107 XM radio stations are completely devoid of more cutting edge humor and programming. Among the XM radio stations offered, one of the most popular is the very Stern like Opie and Anthony, who draw in the more cheap and crude humor oriented crowd.
XM satellite radio is currently the most profitable of the next generation radio services. While HD radio struggles to gain a foothold and Sirius tries to ride out the wave of Howard Stern and NFL listeners, XM satellite radio expects to make around $1 billion in subscription revenue in the coming year. Subscription rates are growing exponentially, with expectations that close to 2 million new subscribers will join their network in 2007.
Still, XM satellite radio suffers from many of same problems that its competitors are facing. The cost of running a satellite network on a subscription base, even with a billion dollars in revenue, is immense. To help eliminate their financial woes and ensure stability in the satellite radio market, XM satellite radio is currently in talks to merge with their chief competitor Sirius. While there are significant legal hurdles to this merger, it appears that it will be allowed towards the end of 2007. This combined service with all major professional sports, diverse talk , and music programming might be enough to make satellite the standard bearer for broadcast radio.
For now though, XM satellite radio is a remarkably stable service on the frontier of a media revolution. 2007 will be a pivotal turning point in whether or not HD, Sirius, or XM satellite radio stations sink or swim on this ever changing landscape. While the public at large has been relatively slow to accept changes to the classic radio format in the past, the upgrades offered by XM radio stations, especially after the merger, might just be too much for consumers to pass up.
Sources:
XM Corporate Information. XM Satellite Radio. 2001-2007. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://www.xmradio.com/about/corporate-informa tion.xmc>.
XM Satellite Radio Guidance for 2007. Orbit Cast. 26 Feb. 2007. 27 Feb. 2007 http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/xm-satellite-rad ios-guidance-for-2007.html>.
McCarthy, Michael. “Satellite Radio a Tough Sell.” USA Today. 7 Oct. 2004. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/gear/ent ertainment/2004-10-06-radio-compare_x.htm>.
Scherer, Chris. “Sirius and XM Plan to Merge.” Radio Magazine. 19 Feb. 2007. Prism Business Media, Inc. 27 Feb. 2007 <http://beradio.com/news/sirius_xm_merge/index. html?cid=topstory021907>.
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