July 2005 Archives

Paul Anka will be getting behind the mic tomorrow (July 30th) to play his favorite musical selections and tell some stories on SIRIUS channel 75.

If you didn’t know, Paul Anka is the writer of classics like “Diana,” “Puppy Love,” “Put Your Head On My Shoulder,” not to mention the theme from The Tonight Show and “My Way”, among others.

And let’s not forget that he’s just released the Verve Records album Rock Swings, featuring his swingin’ versions of songs originally done by Nirvana, Soundgarden, R.E.M., Billy Idol and more. Oh hell yeah. Paul Anka’s THE MAN.

Finally, it seems the SIRIUS is offering a newsletter giving highlights of what’s on different channels for the week.

If you haven’t gotten yours, you can also check it out online.

This has been one of the biggest pet peeves of many subscribers, and it’s nice to see that Sirius is listenening (and responding).

I hadn’t seen this one yet, but a loyal reader sent it over. Check out XM’s latest TV Commercial spotlighting their PGA tour coverage.

Not nearly as funny as the MLB Spot, or even as fun-loving as the MyFi Commercial, but it’ll be entertaining to some I guess.

Thanks cb!

XM announced their Q205 Results, and here’s the jist of it all:

• Quarterly revenue increased 136 percent over last year’s quarter to $125 million
• They had 647,226 net subscriber additions in the second quarter
• They ended the Quarter with 4,417,490 subscribers compared with 2,100,352 subscribers from last year.

As a result of all the massive growth, XM Satellite Radio has their subscriber guidance from 5.5 Million to 6 Million subscribers by years end.

There’s a whole lot else announced, so go ahead and read the Press Release here.

Not sure if anyone else heard it this morning, but Howard Stern again said that Sirius has 3 Million subscribers. This following the recent 3.5 Million number he said on the air last week.

Could it be that he’s leaking this? It’s days before the Q2 results and these numbers must be driving SIRI investors wild.

Apparently in the latest Q3 report from Agere, we find some very interesting information (though, the slightly disturbing?). Agere and Sirius have extended their agreement and will develop a new platform that will use SIRIUS-designed technology and “unique set of complementary technologies” to expand the product line.

Agere will deliver the new chipsets that will be integrated into some of SIRIUS’ new digital radio products as early as the fall of 2006.

…fall 2006???

Napster and XM Satellite Radio have announced a massive partnership, and the debut of the XM + Napster online music service. With XM + Napster, users will be able to access, purchase and download XM and Napster content. Expected launch date? The fourth quarter of this year.

This service announcement comes also with the announcement of several new XM/MP3 players using XM’s Connect and Play technology.

When the XM/MP3 player is connected to a PC, the “XM + Napster” service will match the marked XM song titles with Napster’s massive music catalog; available songs can be purchased individually for on-demand listening and transferred to the player for a completely portable experience.

The “XM + Napster” service will also enable XM subscribers to manage their entire digital music collection under a single interface from a variety of sources.

The NY Times reports that a new Public Radio International program, “Open Source from P.R.I.” will be made available. Not only does the program pull from unfiltered voices and opinions found on blogs, Open Source uses its own blog to cull ideas and sources from its listeners.

“Part of the goal here is to get off the island and burst out of the bubble of traditional media,” says host Christopher Lydon, co-creator of the program, who adds that the idea is “both getting the signal out and harvesting the energy and insight that comes on the web.”

The program is produced at Boston’s WGBH-FM and broadcast on KUOW in Seattle and KCPW in Salt Lake City. It is available online as live stream audio and a podcast. PRI is negotiating to begin broadcasting Open Source on XM Satellite Radio on August 1.

XM Satellite Radio has entered the motorcycle market with Harley-Davidson’s 2006 Screamin’ Eagle Ultra Classic Electra Glide (FLHTCUSE model), the first motorcycle ever equipped with a standard XM Satellite Radio.

This is all part of the Advanced Audio System by Harmon/Kardon. The Advanced Audio System is standard on the Screamin’ Eagle Ultra, and can be added as an accessory feature to the Harley-Davidson’s 2006 FLHX, FLHTC, FLTR and FLHTCU models.

According to a recent article on TWICE, it looks like Directed Electronics will be releasing a combo docking station (called the “Executive Docking Station”) for the Sirius Sportster, the Apple iPod, and eventually other media devices. The unit will feature interchangable docking cradles, so when you’re done listening to your iPod you can crank up Maxim Radio.

For about $200, you get a 20-watt amp powering a set of micro-speakers. It has outputs to connect to your computer and folds up for transport (nice). The only bummer is that additional cradles are expected to run $70-$80. A little pricey on the cradles, but the main unit isn’t really that expensive so it evens out.

Release date? September for the Sportster version. iPod cradle by the end of Q4, and the remaining “other” devices by early next year.

XM fired back at the NAB’s complaints over the WCS acquisition deal.

“Our satellite radio license allows us to provide content of local interest over our satellites, and consequently, we provide content such as traffic, weather, Amber Alerts and emergency information. We are also permitted to use land-based repeaters to retransmit the entire satellite signal to consumers in urban areas where building may block the satellite signal,” wrote XM CEO Hugh Panero and Chairman Gary Parsons.

“NAB’s real goal is to limit the availability of content not just on XM, but on all providers of mobile media subscription services, including cell phone companies, WiMAX providers, etc.”

Tell em boys!

I’m getting reports that Howard Stern said twice this morning that Sirius has 3.5 Million Subscribers. I didn’t listen to the show and didn’t find any mention of it on MarksFriggin.

Can anyone else confirm? Could this be why Sirius has been so quiet lately?

UPDATE: OK, so apparently it was said, but I’m not sure in what context it was. 3.5 million because of Howard? 3.5 million expected? I can’t see this being leaked out without a major announcement being made before the Q2 report, but who knows.

I’m seeking out the audio right now. When I get it, I’ll post it.

Dallas Wayne and Hillbilly Jim join Mojo Nixon and crew on SIRIUS’ Outlaw Country channel 36.

Professional wrestler Hillbilly Jim now hosts Hillbilly’s Jim’s Moonshine Matinee on Outlaw Country on Saturdays from 10 am to 2 pm ET (repeated on Sundays from 2 to 6 pm ET).

Singer, songwriter and actor Dallas Wayne hosts weeknights on Outlaw Country from 8 pm to 12 midnight ET.

XM Satellite Radio will release their own Q205 results on Thursday, July 28, 2005. They’ve scheduled a conference call at 10:00am ET that day to discuss the results. You can listen online as well.

SIRIUS has scheduled a conference call at 8:00am ET on August 2nd to their Q205 results. You can listen to the conference call online, and by tuning to SIRIUS Channel 131.

Gizmodo's own XM informant, Hearsay Boy, apparently is saying that the XM / WorldSpace deal is the beginning of XM's overall strategy hell bent on world domination!

Here's what he had to say:

XM technology may be quickly spreading to ?billions-with-a-B? more people on the other side of the globe. The term for the warrants is only three years, so they ain?t exactly sitting on their duffs on this one, either.

They want repeaters for their network, and XM?s advanced chipset technology. You simply do not need that if you plan to stick with a stationary receiver model, as they have now.

This could be great news for your satrad-starved readers in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

[Linkage]

Garmin has just announced the new GPSMAP 376C that displays graphical XM WX Satellite Weather data.

This is the first portable GPS with XM WX Satellite Weather and XM Satellite Radio. So you not only combine a portable GPS unit with the XMWX service overlaying information like NEXRAD radar, storm cells, wind speeds, surface temperatures, forecasts, and more than a dozen other weather attributes. BUT, you also can receive satellite radio on this thing.

Now THAT’s cool.

This is sorta neat. Digital Home Canada did a poll for Satellite Radio in Canada, and it looks like 65% of repondants said they would.

Now, mind you that the type of person who visits Digital Home Canada is probably of the “early adopter” moniker, but hell - that’s some good results!

But even more interesting is that there’s nearly a 50/50 split between which service the respondants would go with. 207 readers or 50.1% said they would subscribe to XM Radio while 206 or 49.9% said they would subscribe to Sirius.

According to a new Eastlan study, 80% of Americans still have little interest in satellite radio and remain unlikely to subscribe to satellite radio in the future. This reflects similar results to the same study performed back in 2001.

The study also found that 5% of those surveyed are currently subscribing to satellite radio, while another 5% have never even heard of satellite radio. 9% are likely to subscribe to satellite radio sometime in the future.

Not for nothing, but 20% of the population being interested in Satellite Radio isn’t all that bad. That’s something like 50 million people no? Very similar number to what analysts are expecting the satellite radio market to be by 2010. So yeah, 50 million people * $13/month = $7,800,000,000 annually. I’ll take it!

[Link]

Interesting article by SmartMoney about the current state of Sirius, especially admist all the news that XM Radio has been generating. All eyes are on Sirius’ Q2 results (expected out next week).

Apparently WBUR - Boston’s NPR station - is canceling The Connection and moving On Point into the newly vacated 10am slot. They’re also going to refocus Here and Now to be more Boston-oriented.

This effects on the XM Public Radio lineup (which carries all three shows). WBUR is apparently changing it’s focus from the push into national syndication, of which XM was a big part. With the relationship between WBUR and XM, it’ll be interesting to see how this affects XM Public Radio.

Thanks Scott!

Kagan Research forecasts that consumer interest in satellite radio is growing at a rapid pace. Factors such as low churn, new programming and exclusive agreements with auto manufacturers will boost subscriptions for XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio to 46.8 million, with revenues of $7.6 billion, by 2014.

Sure, free emerging technologies will cause competitive pressure, but the auto partnerships are offering some protection according to Kagan.

Interestingly enough, they’re estimating that XM will reach cash-flow-break-even by Q3 2007 and Sirius will be around 2008. This is a much more conservative estimate than what we’ve been hearing.

XM Satellite Radio has announced it would buy $25 million of stock in WorldSpace, which provides satellite radio services in Asia, Europe and Africa, extending the largest U.S. service’s international presence.

XM will also get warrants giving it the right to buy another $37.5 million in WorldSpace stock and an option to invest with WorldSpace and other partners in other countries around the world.

Well, let’s do another XM rumor but this time I’m gonna try my hand at a riddle. You might need to do a lil’ research to get this one, but I’m trying not to be obvious about it.

What would get if you crossed the Latin “ex” and “tē” with the Eighth Month in the Roman calendar?

Rumor has it that Sirius Satellite Radio and McDonalds are doing some sort of deal to pipe Sirius content into McDonalds outlets like XM/Starbucks. Some are speculating that this is piggy-backing on the DISH Network deal with SIRI, and that the deal is really between DISH and McDs, but either way Sirius content will be heard in select restaurants.

It’s all just rumors right now, but a quick Google News search does drop a distinct hint to validate it.

Hyatt Hotels plans to install XM Satellite Radio service in all of their hotel rooms. XM and Hyatt announced they signed the multi-year agreement to launch the new service in more than 50,000 Hyatt guest rooms a few weeks ago.

Hyatt is the first hotel chain to offer complimentary Satellite Radio service. This should be rolling out nationwide sometime in the Fall.

Earlier this morning we got a notice from a dedicated reader that Stern will be leaving Terrestrial as of today. The fuel for the rumor was almost validated with this flyonthewall entry:

Viacom B-Howard Stern to leave VIA.B early VIA.B is severing ties with shock jock Howard Stern four months before his contract ends and allowed him to go on air this morning to say goodbye to listeners. David Lee Roth is rumored to be replacing him on the air. :theflyonthewall.com

But listening to this morning's Stern show you knew quite obviously that it was a big joke. If you've listened to Stern for any amount of time you could clearly smell the prank a mile a away.
Billboard Radio Monitor has more on this.

Is it me, or does this guy come across as the biggest dick ever? NAB Chairman Eddie Fritz wrote a letter to the House of Representatives whining about the XM Satellite Radio proposed acquisition of WCS Wireless.

Rather than regurgitate what he said, I’ll let his letter speak for itself. No doubt you’ll all enjoy it.

(NOTE: Remember that all the reports about what the additional spectrum will be used for have essentially been speculation by reporters. XM has in no way said “we shall localize thy content!” so his complaints are just a hype to lobby congressmen.)

Several sources have been dropping big hints that August will be a big month for XM Satellite Radio announcing several new units. Very little info as to what exactly will be announced, but we do hear it will be “incredible.”

Sorry for the tease, but that’s all I can say for now. More info on this as it develops…

Oh sure, Banc of America doesn’t see Satellite Radio advertising having the rapid growth that many (read: Mel Karamzin) are stating even with Howard Stern on board. But $60 million projected for both XM and SIRIUS combined next year, and a projected 10% of total revenue coming from advertising in 2010, isn’t something to shove your nose up in the air about.

Afterall, these are PAID services no? Satellite Radio’s dependency on advertising is no where near Terrestrial’s.

SIRIUS Satellite Radio and Sirenza Microdevices are introducing a small, ultra-low profile, high-performance antenna for SIRIUS that is the thinnest ever produced for satellite radio.

The new disc-shaped antenna has been designed by Sirenza to optimally receive and amplify SIRIUS’ digital signals. The antenna is magnetically mounted, and is designed to operate with various SIRIUS radio receivers.

[Click to see Hi-Res Photo]

UPDATE: I knew this antenna looked familiar. It’s the same one from the leaked Sportster IR photos.

BusinessWeek brings up (once again) the thoughts and benefits of SIRIUS Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio merging. If not into a single companies, then at the least sharing programming across both platforms. Their argument is that there’s bigger fish to fry than each other (such as Wireless Radio, HD Radio, Podcasting, etc).

I highly doubt that a merger is in order, and while the FCC SDARS licenses don’t specifically prohibit a merger, I can’t see them being happy about such a merger. BUT that said, shared programming? interoperability? Sure.

XM Satellite Radio has announced that it will acquire WCS Wireless, which owns wireless licenses in the 10 megahertz frequency bands which happen to be adjacent to XM’s satellite radio service. This would enable XM Satellite Radio to offer additional multimedia services like data and video services. Others are reporting that this deal could nearly double the amount of programming XM can offer (including additional multilanguage channels)

It’s an all-stock deal for 5.5 million shares, valued at around $200 million. Both XM and Sirius may have to make more acquisitions to address competitive threats in the coming months.

According to a Reuters report that’s the rumor. Sounds silly to me.

Billboard PostPlay reports that the dollar amount on the investment for Network Live by AOL, AEG and XM Satellite Radio is in the $15 million range. Each of the partners will pay a Network Live licensing fee for the content they receive from Network Live.

Read more…

Wow. This is huge. AEG, America Online, and XM Satellite Radio have joined together to create Network Live. Network Live is the first multi-platform digital entertainment company that will be delivering live entertainment programming through the Internet, Satellite Radio and other global media platforms such as VOD, Wireless and HDTV.

Damn. We knew that the AOL/XM partnership would be huge, but we couldn’t have expected this - first Radio@AOL, then Live 8, now a whole new company? Big news.

Network Live will produce live programming focusing on music and comedy performances - many originating from AEG affiliated venues such as the STAPLES Center. The programming will be promoted to AOL’s web audience (over 100 million!) and to XM Satellite Radio subscribers.

The company will also use the expertise of AEG’s live entertainment division, AEG LIVE, one of the world’s leading concert promoters. Network Live programming will add to AOL and XM’s own popular original franchises, such as AOL Music Sessions, which has featured many top recording artists, and XM’s Artist Confidential and Then…Again…Live!

Read notes from the Press Conference here.

SIRIUS Satellite Radio just announced that Land Rover is now offering SIRIUS Satellite Radio as a factory-installed option on the 2006 Range Rover and 2006 Range Rover Sport vehicles. Great news for Sirius. Awesome.

UPDATE: Hey wait a sec… isn’t Land Rover owned by Ford? Is this really new news?

This week marks the beginning of Air America switching over from SIRIUS to XM Satellite Radio, in a move that surprised many back when the exclusive pact was announced back in April. This also marks the renaming of Channel 167 from XM Left to “Air America Radio” since a big chunk of the programming will be as a result of this partnership.

[Linkage]

That’s the question an article in the LA Times is asking in a very interesting read. While each service is obviously doing their best to grab the attention of potential satellite radio subscribers, it’s hardly a situation where one would put the other out of business. Both are good services

If anything, SIRIUS and XM need each other. If one goes out of business, the other definitely loses and Terrestrial will be able to dance around singing “I told you so! nyah nyah nyah!” which is something no one wants.

No, competition is a GOOD thing. It makes both services make sure that they’re not only better than the crap you hear on AM/FM, but strive to be better than each other. In the end, the consumer wins - and that’s what we all want.

Oh sure, some may speculate that the new Sony Ericsson W800i “WalkMan” phone is the next iPod Killer, or MyFi Killer, or whatever. But we don’t really care cause there’s glistening wet hotties posing with this phone and danmit that’s distracting.

I’ve been wanting to do a photo shoot similar to this with a ReGo and a AirWare, only instead of all that sweaty workout crap, there’s Jello involved. Any volunteers? …no? nothing?

Found on Gizmodo

So XM's Website archived history isn't nearly as entertaining due to the fact that they used Flash for about two years (starting from January 17th, 1999). So you sit there and stare at a "Loading" screen until it finally tells you that it can detect Flash 4 (ha!).

It's only until January 25, 2002 that things get interesting.

Surprisingly enough, it looks like they stuck with this design though it remained fairly horizontal until October 04, 2003 when it changed to the site of today.

Question is, when will the next redesigns happen? Seems like both XM and SIRIUS are due for complete makeovers sometime soon.

Well, it looks like today is sorta a slow news day, so I figured I’d take a step back in time using the Wayback Machine and look at what our favorite satellite radio broadcasters’ websites looked like in the old-school days of the web. It’s always entertaining to see how awful websites were back when people actually referred to the stupid thing as the “Information Super Highway.”

Anyway, as we all know SIRIUS Satellite Radio was originally called “CD Radio” and this was their lovely website on February 10, 1998. Just as a quick note, these links will probably take some time to load as their cached on Archive.org’s servers. If you really want to get a chuckle, read the Chairman’s Message - love the photo.

Interestingly enough, the Sirius.com domain has been around for a long time only actually changing hands to SIRIUS Satellite Radio around May 31, 2002. SiriusRadio.com also had the switch over around that time (the Archives of SiriusRadio.com actually show more than Sirius.com which just redirects to the current site).

I dunno, it’s just sorta something fun to look at since there doesn’t seem to be much going on today. I’ll be posting XM’s archive next…

Canadian Satellite Radio (CSR) is pledging $100,000 to help Quebec artists Les Trois Accords and Stefie Shock break into the international music scene - part of the CRTC conditions laid out to allow broadcasting of satellite radio in Canada.

CSR said it plans to invest $35 million to support the growth of the Canadian music and entertainment industry. They also plan to be up and running with its satellite-delivered subscription radio service by the end of the year.

Seems like Chaunce Hayden of Steppin’ Out is up to his ol’ tricks with this little bit. Apparently Hayden wrote in an online post that Howard Stern’s replacement has been found, and he’s none-other than David Lee Roth.

Infinity Broadcasting isn’t commenting, but an “inside source” supposedly confirmed the rumor. Additionally, Roth has been running ads in trade publications looking for a producer “For a HUGE radio show.”

According Hayden “Roth is said to be taking over for Stern in early September, 3 months before the shock jocks contract is due to expire.”

Chaunce is well known for being an attention whore so it’s hard to say whether this is 100% true, but we sure do love this type of juicy gossip!

Found here and here.

Monster (as in Monster Cable, not the job site) and Sirius Satellite Radio are launching the first in a growing line of Sirius components - the Monster SIRIUS Home Antenna and Monster SIRIUS Car Antenna.

The Monster SIRIUS Home Antenna ($49.95 MSRP) mounts inside or out with a hinged base allowing positioning of the antenna up to 90 degrees for maximum signal reception. Its rugged, weather-resistant design resists environmental exposure for long product life.

The Monster SIRIUS Car Antenna ($59.95 MSRP) has a powerful magnetic base that mounts to a car’s roof or other metallic surface for a no-drilling-required hold, while the weather-resistant design reliably receives signals all year long.

Monster will be releasing three more Sirius Satellite Radio products in the near future: Monster SIRIUS Antenna Extension Cable, Monster SIRIUS Dish Mount Antenna and Monster SIRIUS TV/Radio Combiner.

XM Satellite Radio will encore the best performances and backstage interviews (including some previously unaired interviews) from XM’s LIVE 8 coverage with LIVE 8 Replay Weekends starting this Saturday (July 9th).

The LIVE 8 Replay Weekends will devote 48 hours every weekend in July, from 12 midnight ET on Saturday through 12 midnight ET on Monday, on XM LIVE (XM Channel 200).

These LIVE 8 specials are part of XM’s month-long celebration of live music curiously entitled JULIVE running throughout the month of.. July! Good stuff.

SIRIUS Satellite Radio will have live play-by-play action of every 2005 NFL pre-season game live starting with the American Bowl (Colts vs. Falcons) from the Tokyo Dome in Japan on Saturday, August 6th - through the Denver Broncos-Arizona Cardinals game on Friday, September 2nd.

The NFL?s annual Hall-of-Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, featuring the (Dolphins vs. Bears), will be played on Monday, August 8th. SIRIUS will air the game on three channels, allowing listeners to hear the broadcasts of CBS Radio Sports/Westwood One (Ch 125), WBBM Radio in Chicago (Ch 124) and 790 ?The Ticket? in Miami (Ch 123).

Check out the full pre-season broadcast schedule after the jump…

ABC Radio is working to increase it’s multi-cultural programming and has bagged Steve Harris, former VP of External Programming for XM Satellite Radio, to do the job. In his new position he’ll oversee ABC Radio Networks’ Urban and Hispanic radio programming.

We’re always reporting on former Terrestrial execs jump ship to Satellite, so it’s always interesting when the opposite happens. No doubt we’re gonna be seeing a lot of this shuffling going on in the future.

XM Satellite Radio will be providing coverage of the 2005 MLB All-Star Week in Detroit with four days of live, on-location broadcasts, with Cal Ripken, Jr., Rob Dibble, Kevin Kennedy, Larry Bowa, and other members of XM’s MLB team.

XM’s coverage of All-Star Week in Detroit kicks off July 9 at FanFest on the MLB Home Plate channel starting at 12 noon ET and MLB En Espanol starting at 9:00 a.m. ET. The two channels will broadcast live from FanFest each day through July 12. And culminating with the 76th All-Star Game on July 12 at 8:05 p.m. ET on XM’s MLB Play-by-Play Channel 176.

A recent IDC study on US consumers’ music spending habits has some pretty crazy results, and I’m pretty surprised by the numbers. Check it out - 23% of households spend about $10 to $25 a month on recorded music which is pretty interesting (shows that Satellite Radio is priced right). But even more eyebrow raising is that only 6% reported owning portable MP3 players and nearly 6% reported owning Satellite Radio.

Can you say iPod Killer? Are the numbers right here?

On Friday, XM Satellite Radio announced that they’ve added 640,000 new net subscribers in the second quarter.

This brings their total number up to 4.4 Million subscribers - doubling their subscriber base in one year - a rapid growth that no analysts expected at all.

Rumor has it that Sirius Satellite Radio may uncharacteristically be releasing their subscriber numbers this week. I expect Sirius to have an incredible quarter as well driven by their rebate promotion. We shall see.

REDNOVA has a very nice article on Mel Karmazin’s approach on bringing Sirius Satellite Radio to the big time.

Good stuff.

Wow, from the flood of emails in my inbox, I guess I should’ve let everyone know that Orbitcast would be taking a break last week. Well, it wasn’t really a break - I took a week off to cut my house in half and rebuild the roof with my Brother In-law, Father in-law and the help of many others. (Thanks everyone!)

Anyway. So I really appreciate all the concerned emails about whether Orbitcast will be up and running again. No worries, it’s business as usual now!