Orbitcast: December 2008 Archives

December 2008 Archives

Thank YOU, and have a Happy New Year

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Happy New Year!
There's no doubt that 2008 has been an incredible and trying year for satellite radio, but for Orbitcast - and for me, personally - it has been the biggest year, ever.

And so I just want to give a heartfelt thanks to everyone, and share some information about this year with you.

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Audiovox to become principle Satellite Radio supplier

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Satellite RadioAudiovox just announced that it reached an initial agreement with Sirius XM Radio Inc. to become the principal supplier of Sirius satellite radio products to aftermarket retailers.

Combined with its already existing agreement with XM, this effectively makes Audiovox the main retail supplier of satellite radios in North America.
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Fox Business Network dropped from Sirius XM

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Fox Business NetworkFox Business Network, which was only added to the XM dial in June, was quietly dropped from the Sirius XM Radio lineup last week.
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Ring in the New Year with Satellite Radio

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Happy New Year

Sirius XM Radio will have a massive lineup of special New Year's Eve music, entertainment and sports programming to celebrate the coming of 2009 - including the debut of a special "Party City" channel.
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The Pot and Kettle: New York Times profiles Sirius XM

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Howard SternThe New York Times recapped the current state of Sirius XM Radio Inc. in a slanted article over the holidays, painting the service and its business model in a not-so-positive light.

Of course, the Times isn't without its own obstacles, having just experience a 20 percent drop in year-over-year ad revenue itself. A perfect example of the Pot calling the Kettle black.
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Audio: Howard Stern radio commercial for Sirius XM

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Remember that Howard Stern commercial being run on regular radio? Well, a devote Orbitcast reader has sent in the full 90-second audio of the radio ad spot promoting Sirius XM Radio Inc.

(Note the reference to "35 million people" in the commercial.)
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Sirius XM selected as one of World's Most Influential Companies

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The Foxxhole on Sirius XMSirius XM Radio Inc. has been selected by BusinessWeek as one of its "World's Most Influential Companies" for 2008.
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Group claims Sirius XM bankruptcy plans "drafted and ready to file"

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Michael HartleibSaveSirius.org, a group of upset SIRI investors lead by Michael Hartleib (pictured), has posted an account of the recent shareholder meeting during which he was told by a source that bankruptcy plans are in the works.
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Sirius XM issues stock to pay down debt

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Sirius XM Radio CEO Mel KarmazinSirius XM Radio Inc. (SIRI) has issued over 100 million shares of common stock to pay down debt and reduce interest costs, the company disclosed today in a SEC filing.

Additionally, the company revealed that its Chief Accounting Officer is expected to leave the company in January.
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Howard Stern runs ads on regular radio

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Howard SternHoward Stern is being heard once again on regular radio airwaves - only this time he's promoting Sirius XM Radio Inc. in a 90-second ad spot.
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Yes, Orbitcast was hacked

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HackedThis morning Orbitcast was compromised by a hacker... twice (see screenshot above, one more after the jump). I want to sincerely apologize to anyone that might have been affected.


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New "Kids Stuff" show launching on Sirius XM Kids Place Live

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Laurie BerknerFollowing the combining of Sirius and XM channels, many parents were upset over the loss of Sirius Kids Stuff, which targeted a pre-K audience, in lieu of the Kids Place Live channel. Well, Kids Stuff is returning to the channel in the form of a 3-hour daily show.
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The History of Howard Stern Act II starts Monday

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The History of Howard Stern: Act 2The History of Howard Stern Act II premieres this Monday, December 22nd at 6am ET on Howard 100 (and 6am PT on Howard 101), through January 2nd, in 10 separate original parts. One installment will air each day that week and replaying continuously all day, night plus weekends.

The award-winning series picks up after Howard's firing at WNBC in 1985 and takes an in depth look at the beginning of Howard's legendary run at K-Rock.
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2008-09 College Football post-season on Satellite Radio

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College Football: Sooners vs GatorsNationwide coverage of the college football post-season will begin airing on Sirius XM Radio Inc., with live play-by-play coverage of 25 bowl games including the Bowl Championship Series, the Rose Bowl and the FedEx BCS National Championship game.
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Sirius XM renews contract with Bubba the Love Sponge for 2-years

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Bubba the Love Sponge

Sirius XM Radio Inc. has renewed its contract with Bubba the Love Sponge to continue his run on satellite radio for another two-years.
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It comes down to the wire for Bubba

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Bubba the Love SpongeToday is the last day that Sirius XM Radio and Bubba the Love Sponge can renew their relationship, and there remains no word yet as to whether an agreement between the two has been reached.

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Satellite Radio Subscribers predicted to reach 28.4 million in 2013

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Satellite Radio Subscriber GrowthSirius XM Radio Inc. at today's shareholder meeting highlighted its strong subscriber growth despite slowing auto sales. Indeed, the company went so far as to provide longterm guidance for total subscribers into 2013.
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Sirius XM lowers headcount by 22 percent by year end

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Sirius XM headcount reductionSirius XM Radio Inc. today at the shareholder meeting disclosed that will have reduced its headcount significantly by the end of 2008.


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Chrysler shuts down production for a month

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ChryslerChrysler said today it will be shutting down all vehicle production for an entire month, starting this Friday.
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Subscribers halt mass-cancellations of Sirius XM

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Sirius XM Radio

A mass-cancellation effort mounted by unhappy subscribers of Sirius XM has been halted thanks to the company returning The Strobe and Backspin to the channel lineup.
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Confirmed: The Strobe and Backspin return to Sirius XM

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Backspin and The Strobe on Sirius XM Orbitcast has confirmed that Sirius XM Radio are bringing back two music channels: The Strobe and Backspin. Scott Greenstein said this was done in response to "overwhelming passion" from subscribers.
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Rumor: Channels to return to Sirius XM?

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Sirius XM RumorsOrbitcast is hearing rumblings that there could be a possible return of one or more channels to the dial. It's still very vague right now - so I'm marking this one as a "rumor" - but the implication is that Sirius XM Radio is responding to subscriber feedback.

Developing...
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Debt, Delisting and Disgruntled Users

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XM / Sirius
The annual shareholder meeting is only a couple days away, and Sirius XM Radio Inc. is facing a trifecta of negativity surrounding the company. Shareholders are angry. Subscribers are angry. And pundits are opining over the death of a medium.
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MLB Home Plate now on Sirius (is there more to come?)

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MLB Home PlateBest of XM subscribers may be surprised to learn that MLB Home Plate has been quietly added to the channel lineup. But it's the prospect of the MLB on Sirius that has many equally as thrilled about the addition of the baseball talk channel.
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Sirius XM assigns more Music Management positions

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Sirius XM RadioMore music management appointments have been confirmed at Sirius XM Radio Inc., according to FMQB. Remember that a couple months ago we learned about the new Music Programming execs, so these new appointments will report to them.
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Lawmakers order FCC to stand down; put actions on hold

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FCC Chairman Kevin MartinSenator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) today called on FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to put the agency's actions on hold unless they are urgent or required by law.

Rockefeller's and Waxman's committees both have jurisdiction over the FCC.
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Jason Millard joins NiceMac team

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Sirius XM on iPhoneJason Millard from Millard Software is now part of the NiceMac team, the folks behind the StarPlayr and StarLight line of satellite radio applications.

Millard Software is known for it's uSirius and uXM applications (both of which come in iPhone versions, much like the StarPlayr counterpart).
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Will Howard Stern re-sign with Sirius XM?

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Howard SternIs Howard Stern looking to retire from the world of radio when his contract with Sirius XM Radio Inc. comes to an end in 2010? The topic came up during Thursday's show.

"This is my swan song," Stern told a caller on the air.
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ABBA Radio returns for limited encore

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ABBASirius XM Radio Inc. is bringing back ABBA Radio (again), but this time just a short encore return.

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Minority Media & Telecom Council wants HD Radio in "most" Satellite Radios

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HD Jump

The Minority Media and Telecommunications Council (MMTC) has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to include HD Radio capabilities into most satellite radio receivers.
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House Democrats call FCC under Martin "dysfunctional"

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FCC Chairman Kevin Martin
This may not directly relate to satellite radio, but it echoes the sentiment that some felt led to one of the longest merger reviews in FCC history.

Energy and Commerce Chairman John Dingell and Rep. Bart Stupak, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, released a report yesterday that labels the FCC under Kevin Martin as "dysfunctional" and riddled with "abuses of power, suppression of information and manipulation of data."
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Sirius XM offers Lifetime Subscription Discount

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Sirius Lifetime Subscription Discount
Sirius XM Radio Inc. is looking to boost holiday sales by offering a limited-time discount on Sirius Lifetime Subscriptions.

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Satellite Radio Deals: Holiday discounts for Sirius XM fans

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Holiday discounts for satellite radios The Holiday shopping season is in full-swing and hoards of savvy shoppers are looking for those bargains to give to family and friends (and, ahem, sometimes just for ourselves).

So Orbitcast's sponsors have put together some phenomenal satellite radio deals for the Holiday shopping season. These aren't the lame low-end receivers that we're all accustomed to seeing at super "low" prices. We're talking about the top-of-the-line satellite radios and fan-favorite packages at great prices.
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SIRI shareholder lawsuit dismissed

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Mel Karmazin
An U.S. District Judge has dismissed the shareholder lawsuit which was led by Save Sirius founder Michael Hartleib against Sirius XM Radio Inc.

But the case is not yet over.
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Regis Philbin to guest host Bing Crosby Christmas Radio

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Regis PhilbinRegis Philbin will be a special guest host of Bing Crosby Christmas Radio, along with Bing's wife Kathryn Crosby, daughter Mary Crosby, and sons Harry and Nathaniel to share memories, introduce songs and reflect on Crosby's life and work on Sirius XM.


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Audio: Bubba says "goodbye" to his listeners

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Bubba the Love Sponge
Following yesterday's "Bubba The Love Sponge Show" - which subsequently was not heard on Sirius' encore broadcast - an Orbitcast reader has sent in audio from the Friday morning show.
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Sirius pulls Bubba The Love Sponge show replay

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Bubba the Love SpongeWe all know that the relationship between Bubba The Love Sponge and Sirius XM is on the rocks, but today the situation appears to have elevated.

This morning, Bubba was a bit "heated" over the situation with the company. But when it came time for the replay to air at 3pm ET, fans were surprised that they didn't hear this morning's replay.
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The History of Howard Stern: Act II starts Dec 22nd

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The History of Howard Stern: Act 2
The acclaimed documentary, The History of Howard Stern, is returning on Monday, December 22nd with Act II.

The sequel to last year's award-winning series (which, in my opinion, was a phenomenally produced epic) picks up after Howard's firing at WNBC and takes an in-depth look at his run at K-Rock.
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Sirius XM Giveaway: Win an experience with a SatRad celebrity

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Sirius XM GiveawaySirius XM Radio Inc. is running a sweepstakes to giveaway the "experience of a lifetime" with a satellite radio celebrity or exclusive programming partner.
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WorldSpace falling: UK operations shut down

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WorldSpace

Worldspace UK, a separate business unit from WorldSpace Inc., has liquidated and shut down its London uplink facility last month.
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Mel Karmazin sees revenue growth, remains confident on debt

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Mel KarmazinSirius XM Radio Inc. CEO Mel Karmazin said that he forecasts double-digit revenue growth in Q4 and is confident the company can refinance debt due in 2009, at the Reuters Media Summit today in New York.

"The merger has made us control our costs (and) we are dealing with going to significant profitability in the years ahead," Karmazin said."Is everything rosy? Of course not. But what's going on is not operationally problematic."
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FCC grants Sirius XM extension for 3rd Party Channels

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Kevin Martin
The Federal Communications Commission has granted Sirius XM Radio Inc. an extension on the deadline to lease a portion of its channel capacity to third-parties.

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Should Mel Karmazin step down as CEO? (what's YOUR call?)

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Mel KarmazinJon Ogg of 24/7 Wall Street has called for the ousting of Sirius XM Radio Inc. chief executive Mel Karmazin in a recent post.

His reasoning is somewhat vague, well, aside from the fact that the stock price is more than dismal - reason enough for most folks considering the current price. But while Ogg gets his timeline mixed up (psst, Howard Stern announced his joining Sirius before Karmazin came aboard), he does point out that 24/7 Wall Street has a strong track record of calling for the heads of CEOs.

Ogg yields to Michael Hartleib to give the most powerful statement, using Karmazin's own words from a CNBC ad spot where he said that a "shareprice is like a report card."

"News Flash Mr. Karmazin," said Hartleib. "I and members of SaveSirius.org give you a big fat 'F' which I guess is appropriate considering the way you *%$# us."

Of course, many shareholders are angry. For good reason. But the question at hand is whether Mel Karmazin stepping down would improve the situation.

So I'm asking for your opinion.

Do you feel Mel Karmazin should step down as CEO of Sirius XM? Sound off in the comments.

[24/7 Wall Street]

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StarLight for Mac and StarPlayr for Windows Mobile now available

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StarLight for MacMac users can rejoice now that the latest version of StarLight for Mac has been released from the folks behind the StarPlayr line of online satellite radio players. This is a powerful Sirius Internet Radio client wrapped in a slick compact package.

The player remains compact when in use, but allows for nice interactive features like Album Art and Lyrics. Here's a screenshot to show the compact player:

StarLight Sirius Internet Radio player
XM Radio Online support is coming soon, but StarLight does support Sirius Internet Radio (SIR), the Best of XM upgrade, and SIR Premium. Users can adjust the size of the font for the lyrics display, and select which store they would prefer for buying songs (Amazon or iTunes).

Meanwhile, StarPlayr for Windows Mobile was released. It features support for both Sirius Internet Radio and XM Radio Online. You also get fun features like Album Art, What's Playing and Lyrics.

Both StarLight and StarPlayr for Windows Mobile support the new Sponsor Marketing System. The ads are kept off of the front radio player, and are only shown in areas like the Album Art and Lyrics areas - where the most interaction takes place anyway.

Check out exclusive StarLight screenshots and a special preview download link (the final release for StarLight is expected to be on December 12th) after the jump...
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