"The combination of our companies will lead to more choices and better pricing for consumers, and result in a stronger competitor in the rapidly evolving audio entertainment market."

"read my lips ....." oops.

Amazing how history repeats itself.

Alright Jason, here's a business scenario for you:

You are the CEO of the newly merged Sirius-XM. Your company has lost a little more than $1 billion combined in the past year. Expenses are fixed, and you need to (approximately) double your current revenues to reach a profit. How are you going to get that money? Here are your options:

A) Raise prices and cut programming to try to squeeze a few extra bucks out of existing subscribers (and hope they don't cancel)

B) Improve pricing and programming options to get many more people to subscribe

.................... Time's up! ...................

Does it take a business degree to understand this concept? Sirius and XM don't have nearly enough subscribers to survive right now, and they'll need several million more self-paying subscribers just to sniff at a profit. Do you think a merger will suddenly give them the power to circumvent the fact that they need to retain existing subscribers and add millions more to survive?

Mel's statement was a matter of common sense. Satellite radio, merged or not, will have to fight to get more subscribers to survive, and it's hard to convince customers to join and stay if you raise prices and cut programming. Why is this so hard for you people to realize?

jb your comments are exactly why this merger is great for shareholders and the execs but awful for subscribers.

and wait. didn't mel also say that xm and sirius don't need this merger to survive. I believe he said that if the merger doesnt get approved they will both go about business as usual and be fine?

if you support choice voice your opinion against this merger.

I agree with a merger as long as no one at Sirius has to hear that awful Gregg and Tony show...that's the type of show that would kill any merger because it's so God damned awful...I hear their loser fans are gearing up to write letters of protest against the merger...who knew they could form a sentence.

jack,
if you think that's bad there's this group of sternbots that are EXACTLY like them .

"I agree with a merger as long as no one at Sirius has to hear that awful Gregg and Tony show...that's the type of show that would kill any merger because it's so God damned awful...I hear their loser fans are gearing up to write letters of protest against the merger...who knew they could form a sentence."

I, and most other XM fans, feel the same way about Hoo Hoo. Howie has been washed up since Private Parts and everyone knows it. I wonder what you tools are going to do in 2011 when Hoo Hoo's contract expires? Wait for him to re-up?! You know he ain't going to. You tools are worse than the Barry Bonds fans.

I find the ones that favor the merger (the sirius fans) only want it JUST so they can have baseball, hockey, and all other sports that XM has. All while the XM staff (O&A and R&F included), in essence, gets 'buried in the desert'.

We all know that's going to happen, based on my experience with being in the short end of company mergers before, things aren't looking too good for XM if/when the merger passes. It's unfortunate they don't realize it.

espnjason, what are you going to do when howard retires. 1 of 2 things are going to happen with opie and anthony. They will be the same age if not older than howard at the time you say he was washed up so there for they will be washed up or irrelevant. Or they will not have another show to make fun of.

when howie retires, someone will step up and take his place. it's how the world works.

Theres plenty of talent out there and they will fill the gap.

I hope the merger takes place so I can hear O&A and Howie. (although xm looks like it is looking for an excuse to fire them.

Plus if the merger happens, the stock price will go up and I'll make $$$$

Let's take this further...Only pay stations in the future.owned by one megacorporate monopoly who owns the government. Shades of what?
I don't want government ownership of the airwaves (CUBA) and I don't want corporate monopoly ownership of the airwaves (fascism).Always keep the airwaves independent.