Howard Stern's contract expires in just about one-year, and the next few months will show some creative bargaining on both sides. At a 2009 Reuters Media Summit last week, Sirius XM Radio Inc. CEO Mel Karmazin told reporters that the bargaining would begin with Stern complaining that he was doing too many shows, working too hard and not making enough money.
In turn, Management would ask him to do more for less money. But in the end, Karmazin has hopes the result would be a new deal to retain a star he called "a talent like no other in radio."
At the summit, when asked whether Howard Stern or Oprah Winfrey is the tougher negotiator with the satellite radio provider, Karmazin responded: "I'll tell you who was the worst negotiator: It was always Mel because they got all that money from me."
That may not ring well with some shareholders who are looking to the satcaster to reduce content costs.
But Karmazin is well aware of that.
Susie Gharib last week interviewed Karmazin for PBS' Nightly Business Report, where he was asked whether Howard Stern was going renew is his contract with Sirius XM.
"Howard has been a very significant performer for us," Karmazin said during the interview. "He has to decide on whether or not he wants to continue.
"If he does, I would be doing everything I can to work out financial arrangements that are in our shareholders' best interests to do a deal with Howard."
Trying to work out an arrangement is one thing, but can Sirius XM afford it?
"Over my entire career, I've always heard that content is expensive," Karmazin told PBS. "Well, yeah, content is very expensive and if you want to have great content, whether it be the NFL or whether or not it be Howard Stern, you have to pay for it.
"And my business model is always that I'd rather figure out a way to make money with the talent rather than not have them and compete against them."
That's the key right there. If Stern should decide to continue broadcasting and move to another service, the defection would be a damaging - if not fatal - blow to satellite radio.
[via Radio Business Report]
That may not ring well with some shareholders who are looking to the satcaster to reduce content costs.
But Karmazin is well aware of that.
Susie Gharib last week interviewed Karmazin for PBS' Nightly Business Report, where he was asked whether Howard Stern was going renew is his contract with Sirius XM.
"Howard has been a very significant performer for us," Karmazin said during the interview. "He has to decide on whether or not he wants to continue.
"If he does, I would be doing everything I can to work out financial arrangements that are in our shareholders' best interests to do a deal with Howard."
Trying to work out an arrangement is one thing, but can Sirius XM afford it?
"Over my entire career, I've always heard that content is expensive," Karmazin told PBS. "Well, yeah, content is very expensive and if you want to have great content, whether it be the NFL or whether or not it be Howard Stern, you have to pay for it.
"And my business model is always that I'd rather figure out a way to make money with the talent rather than not have them and compete against them."
That's the key right there. If Stern should decide to continue broadcasting and move to another service, the defection would be a damaging - if not fatal - blow to satellite radio.
[via Radio Business Report]
(
Mel
Save your money and give to Anthony and me. We deserve it.
Just look at our track record and you'll see that we're worth every penny.
Hoo Hoo Robin, I'm pricing myself out of a job. But I don't care. I just don't care. Mel and his jew nose cunt of a "revolutionary" can go eat shit. Lets get some better content at a lower price. He was great in the 80's. Hes a grandmother now.
First off Sirius is basically a monopoly. Who the F are they competing with? Howard works only 4 days a week with lots of weeks off a year. What commercial company is going to hire him? Also he is in his mid to late 50s so he will probably start to struggle getting the key demo and he has lost a step big time.
Sirius at best should just match any offer. Which would probably save 400 plus million. Frankly, they should just let him go.
Simply put...Howard leaves millions leave!
Sirius is a cute little service. I subscribe, myself. However, the day Howard leaves, sirius is lost in the shuffle of internet streaming music services. I will stream Pandora for free at home and in my car through 3G networks. Whether you like Howard or not, he pays for himself through the subscribers he brings in and the advertising he runs. Most importantly, he he makes sirius stand out from the crowd. Howard will get whatever deal he wants, with whatever hours he wants.
...and by the way, Bababooey.
It's simple. Stern goes, satellite radio is dead in two years or less.
Howard should be shit-canned and the money spent on expanding content. He sucks.
If Stern leaves, O n A will reign supreme. They will be the new face of radio.
I remember that thought process a couple of years ago when Stern left regular radio and Dopey n Dorothy claimed they would rule the world.
If Stern leaves satrad is done. No one will put their eggs in the o n a basket. It has way too many holes to fill.
Granted, I think Stern is a tool way past his prime, but I think they'd be better off keeping him and canning Melvin. I'll at least give you the fact that Ol' Hooknose at least drew in some listeners, all Melvin has done is send them fleeing and cost investors billions.
So if Howard decided instead to retire, that could also be a fatal blow and Sirius might as well hang it up because all the other channels are irrelevant? I don't think so.
How many subs would Sirius have without Howard Stern, none? Would Sirius survive with ONLY a Howard Stern show?
What are the other channels that help constitute "the best radio on radio?" chopped liver?
Sirius is evolving into much more than a one trick pony.
Get over the possibility that some day and maybe soon, Howard may want to retire but that won't necessarily be the day the music dies. jmo.
TVGenius - I think they should keep Stern too. You can debate how many people listen to him on satellite, but I don't think it's unreasonable to say that if he leaves, so do an awful lot of subscribers. So yes - keep Ol' How could a hot chick marry a guy with a face like that unless he was filthy rich Stern ( you just have to love the way some women are biologically wired to dig for gold!).
Mel "the programmings gone to HELL" Karmazin has been on my mind quite a bit lately. I think about stuff, you know what I mean? This Mel guy... he's one of these wheeler dealer types. I sometimes think he's way more concerned about being a "mover and a shaker" than he is about having a passionate devotion to the service and the product he's in charge of making a success. I want him to have a love for radio, and I want him to have a commitment to the people who love radio. I want this to all be sincere and genuine; not some phony act by a veteran media executive shyster who is motivated by an ego driven lust to preserve some preconceived legacy. I criticize Melvin a lot, but in my heart I want him to be successful, and for satellite radio to prosper. All of us do, naturally. There's only one problem: I ain't gettin' a real good vibe from the Wiley Wunderkind of the Airwaves. I don't think he has the faintest idea what the listeners want, or need, or desire. I don't think he has any notion whatsoever of what makes for great radio. Or even good radio. I think he cares deeply about the art of the deal - but he is oblivious to the art of customer satisfaction. I'm sure he is a savvy business man, persuasive negotiator, and a corporate bulldog that despises failure. That's his reputation, but the fact of ther matter is that he is failing. For all his hard work, and for all he has accomplished while at Sirius/XM, in my opinion he is an abject failure. He has failed to combine the two companies in such a way that they could be perceived by the general public as a truly merged, single entity. Mass confusion still abounds on that front. He has failed to maintain the quality of the programming; it continues to mimic frivolous, terrestrial nonsense more and more each day. That's a big failure! He has failed to form even the slightest connection with the subscribers. There should be communication, interaction, and an old fashioned desire to deliver customer satisfaction. The Customer Care is a joke; all I ever get is an e-mail requesting that I update my listener preferences. That's it! I have complained adnauseam about the programming. Their response: "we play what the listeners are requesting." That's it! FAILURE!!!
Like I said, I hope that Mel does get this company to turn the corner, and to someday start to realize the potential that satellite radio seemed to be destined for at one time. I hate to keep repeating the same thing over and over... but until he changes some of his core behaviors and attitudes towards the subscribers (how often have we heard him say "as long as it enhances shareholder value"- and the like?), he and failure are going to be inexorably intertwined. It's time to stop worrying about the deal so much, and instead deal with the very real problems and frustrations of his millions of listeners. Mr. Karmazin, if you want to go from zero to hero in one fell swoop, come out of your ivory tower and come join us in our world of total neglect and satellite radio despair. It's time for you to treat us as living, breathing human beings who have value - and can be of enormous value to you and the company. We already are, as a matter of fact. The surface has only been scratched, however. Treat us well, and you will see, before your very eyes, a resurgence in Sirius/XM that you never envisioned in a million years. Remember the key words, "Treat us right." You can start by bringing back superior, "best in the industry" programming, and by having real Customer Care. You know - the two things that are the epitome of the word FAILURE !
Im pretty sure howard will stay with sirius , he just wont find anyone else that would pay him as good as sirius would even if sirius pays much less this time , howard you have no choice brother you either renew or retire , i'd retire if i was you i mean you got all the money in the wolrd already what the heck you want more for ;]
Ok Stern is a commodity. Every commodity has a price. Is Stern worth his cost? I don't think so and it will be more critical as the cost of debt goes up, to evaluate whether he is worth his keep. The lame management at SXM will ride the one trick pony until it breaks.
Sirius needs a little more time with Howard before they're ready to stand on their own merits. They need a contract that gets him on both sirius and xm. More importantly, they need a contract that gets him out doing wacky commercials and promotions. His listeners love him and make him profitable but, sirius needs a marketing onslaught. Yes, new car sales are important to building subscribers but, the general public needs to be reminded why they need a subscription service when they can be streaming Pandora instead.
Where is Howard going to go if Sirius doesn't re-sign him? He always said he will never go back to terrestrial because he loves the freedom that satellite radio brings. Mel, what are you worried about in terms of competition?? Howard's show is already less than it was back in the 80's, do you really think people are going to flock to hear him in an even more watered down environment like terrestrial radio? Any freedom that he had as little as 5 years ago is completely gone - the restrictions are ridiculous these days!
Simply put, in order for Howard to survive, he needs SiriusXM as much as SiriusXM "thinks" they need him. If Howard decides to do a podcast, or the like, he would get lost in the shuffle where people would not know where to find him, or even care enough to seek him out. As it is now, there is not enough marketing done by Siruis to gain new listeners for his show. The loyal following that he had are already on board. There are no more to be gained. And I don't think there will be as many cancellations as they might think. Listeners may have signed up for Howard, but may stay for the other content that they've discovered.
You know Howard is not going to take a pay cut without doing less work than he already does. He is a greedy bastard who only cares about himself and not the survival of the company. Let him rot and spend the money saved on improving the rest of the service. Oprah and Martha Stewart (and the rest of the big name "celebrity DJ's") should be the next to go. Focus on the music for once, and music programmers who are passionate about it!!
Correction: wile... noy "wiley." That coyote (Wile E.) screwed me up. Correction #2: Try to re-sign him, but if his demands are unreasonable, then screw it. He should "work" for nothing after what he got the first time. Unless he hires Mike Tyson as his financial planner, he wont run out of money in 10 lifetimes. When is enough, enough? There are people in this country eating dog food and living in cardboard boxes. If he wants to throw a hissy fit, then he should take his dog and cat obsessed trophy wife and just go on permanent vacation. He already works barely 9 months out of the year, so adapting to that leisurely lifestyle should be no problem. After hanging out with the goofy wife 24/7, and having to deal with the menagerie/petting zoo environment in the house (this broad has huge "pain in the ass" potential - and I think he is finding that out), his gig at satellite will resemble paradise! He needs to understand that his fans are what made him. All the money in the world won't replace the thrill of hearing "did you hear what Howard said." His ego needs to be fed, and it can't survive on money alone. He and Mel seem to have a good relationship, so it will probably get done. Of course, I could be wrong about all of this. I guess we'll find out before too long.
jfd - you're absolutely correct! They need to MERGE -not just hypothetically, but in actuality. Their biggest attraction... and he's only available to those with Sirius. To hell with all this "best of" bullshit; either merge, or don't merge. And they wonder why people aren't signing up?!
"Marketing onslaught" - that nails it, and is exactly what they should be doing right now. The commercial is decent, but they need to blitz from all angles. Billboards, print ads, bumper stickers, t-shirts, hats, continue to re-activate dead radios, but notify as many people as possible before hand. A Super Bowl commercial! A give the radios away for free promotion/with killer deals on the subscription. Cut that Skydock price in half. Kiosks in shopping malls, Sirius/XM playing in every car showroom and grocerystores/supermarkets. Much better displays in Radio Shack, Best Buy, etc. Get the satellite radio stuff out of the very back of Best Buy, and display it someplace where human beings actually roam. They might as well have it in the stock room; it couldn't sell any less. Do something to get women interested in the service; maybe buy a bra in Victoria's Secret... get a Stratus 6 for free. Hell, put the radio right inside the bra. I would be more than happy to help them program the pre-sets! Something, for God sakes. I would like to know what the percentage of subscribers are women? Personally, I don't know one chick that has Sirius/XM; then again I don't get out much. I need to go find some honest, girl next door cocktail waitresses. Uh... maybe not.
Hey Mel - you've been very bad this year. If you don't want a lump of coal in your stocking, then write this on the board a thousand times: MARKETING ONSLAUGHT! Get along now, Melvin. Times a wastin'.
How can satellite radio be "dead without Stern" when XM was the more popular service before the merger, and it did not have Howard Stern? Consider also the ratings, which show that Stern's channels, while quite popular, are no more so than a couple of the more popular music channels added together. If the loss of Stern were the death of satellite radio, it would be only as one of several factors contributing to that end.
Having said that, it would probably be better for Sirius XM to keep Howard Stern than to lose him, but the company needs to get more bang for its buck, and it probably needs some help paying for Stern's costly voice. If I were Mel, rather than trying to pay Stern less, I'd look at having him do more -- such as hosting a one-hour daily show that would be syndicated to terrestrial radio stations. With the listeners Stern could command on such a show, Sirius XM could make a killing on advertising if it sold half of the slots and let the local stations sell the other half.
The terrestrials wouldn't tolerate too much promoting of Stern's Sirius XM show on their stations, but Sirius XM could do that itself, advertising how many hours of a week of Stern its subscribers get, and that it's "uncut and uncensored." I think having this free show would not only make money but get Stern back into the center of the limelight as an entertainer, because so many more people would have access to him. This could, in turn, bring additional people to Sirius XM as new fans discover him on terrestrial. It's classic marketing -- get them in the door on the free offer, then sell them an upgrade.
I'm a big Stern fan but i would rather see him go and be replaced with someone who isn't going to take every other week off!
If Howard is so important then why is he not availble across the whole platform (many including myself will not pay EXTRA to hear Stern). MLB is more valuble than Stern in my opnion and the company needs to spend wisely. Everyone who came on board will not leave the service all at once. Some might but others will still enjoy the service and pay for it. Stern "might" have been a good move in the past but now is time to move on. He costs way too much and NOBODY is talking about him. At least other shows are getting noticed by the mainstream media...Stern seems to be bored with radio and sorry to say it's starting to show from many of his fans I have talked to.
As xcountry stated, XM was more popular than Sirius. Howard Stern's clout is overrated. Instead of trying to imitate terrestial radio, satellite radio must go "beyond am, beyond fm" once again.
How can satellite radio be "dead without Stern" when XM was the more popular service before the merger, and it did not have Howard Stern?
Correct. XM was clearly ahead of Sirius for many years. Even with Howard Stern, Sirius never managed to top XM's overall subscriber base.
The thing is, XM was a quality music service. Sirius is not. For that reason, I don't know how well Sirius will do without Stern.
I don't even know if Stern wants to continue. He keeps saying he doesn't -- but that's usually ploy to get a better contract.
PS: These new Best Buy pop-up ads driving you guys crazy yet?
Stern was always a deal with the devil, and the day of reckoning is rapidly approaching.
Mel cannot possibly pay Stern a sizable fraction of what Stern made for the last five years (something close to 3/4 billion dollars).
Stern will either have to agree to take the largest pay cut in world history or Sirius has to do without him.
More likely alternative is a "Stern Lite" akin to XM's "Oprah" channel -- with very little Stern and much lower cost.
The King of All Media, maybe -- but Howard Stern wrecked satellite radio. Ruined it.
I would bet that Howard has already agreed to a new contract. Why would they produce a new TV commercial with Howard in it if the possibility of Howard leaving was still out there?
OH PLEASE!...dump Howard, he's so old and tired and the money could be so much better spent on the music programming. Bring back the old Sirius that was before all this expensive "talent" came on board.
Mel get your head out of your (and Howard's) ass!
"Focus on the music for once, and music programmers who are passionate about it."
That, jcrean, says it all. There are simple solutions to their problems; they are doing the equivalent of trying to kill a fly with a shotgun. All they have to do is take that little flyswatter... and swat that shitty programming away. Instead, they run around with the shotgun, shooting aimlessly and causing severe damage. A few smarts, with a bit of finesse (program tweaking) and PRESTO; happy, satified listeners, and positive word of mouth! Will this ever dawn on them?
I don't think Howard is going anywhere. Where's he gonna go? Internet radio? No. Back to FM radio? Nope. So he's either gonna retire (doubtful) or stay with Sirius.
But Sirius shareholders aren't gonna break the bank to keep him. Howard will axe all the bullshit side shows, he'll axe the secondary channel, and Sirius will only pay to keep one channel and the Howard Stern show.
What other reasonable and rational options are left? None.
Just my opinion.
Prozac, I think you make a crucial point when you say no one is talking about Stern anymore. His shows aren't mentioned in the mainstream media because...nobody hears them. A few do, of course, but when a guy who was once on in so many major markets across the country is now be heard by just a fraction of the relative handful of people who have Sirius XM, he becomes irrelevant. This is why I say satellite needs to share him with terrestrial. Give people a taste of the show, maybe do afternoon drive rather than morning, 5-6 p.m. only, whatever works, but his voice needs to get out there again, and the advertising on the show could defray Stern's salary.
Paying Stern hundreds of millions to play to a tiny satellite radio audience is like paying U2 to play at a high school prom. You could do it, but the cost per audience member is going to awfully high, and that's the case here.
xcountry - great idea.That's not only innovation, but common sense to boot. Because it makes so much sense, I'm afraid Mel will reject it immediately. Look at all the other suggestions that they ignore; this is one that really could be huge, however.
3/4 of a billion dollars (more than Beyonce or Madonna makes) is not enough money. OK, I just threw up in my shoe
Does Howard even want to do radio?
I don't think he does. They had to pay him $100 million a year to start the Revolution. There's no way they are going to pay him anything close to that again. The money is just not there, not that it was ever there to begin with.
And then there is the whole Friday thing. Having every Friday off only hurts the show. If Howard wanted to do radio, why does he insist on having every Friday off? Why does he demand ten weeks off a year?
Prediction----Howard resigns for less...but he also works less with a possible later morning, afternoon slot
Why even bother. Give O n A and the boyz more money. We deserve it. Just look at how much we do and all the listeners we have. Remember we're VIRAL!
Mel should put his eggs in our basket just like regular radio did. We won't let Sirius/XM down
I'm not a big Howard fan so I don't know, but if Howard quits completely and stops doing radio, won't his fans stay? They can't be jaded or upset at the company if he simply says that he is retiring from the business. It seems that he's not taking all this time off because he's lazy but rather because he can't do that much radio anymore and have all of it be gold. I'm not insulting the man, I'm just speculating reasons on why he is taking so much time off. I think its smart on his part to take more time off so he can do better radio when he's there.
If Howard leaves and goes somewhere else, that's a big problem, but who can afford to pay any staff that much money in this economy. SRIUS XM is best equipped to pay his salary than any other radio company anywhere. Or at least they have the biggest incentive to pay him more.
At this point its good to realize that in the future, if not the near future that is, Howard could leave and just retire. What will happen then?
Fiscal Concerns: Look to say Howard pays for himself is an understatement, if you look at the simple math. estimates as low as 2 mil a people and as high as 5 mil have subscribed because of him at an average cost of $10/month per sub his show brings about 240-600 mil a year on a 100 mil a year contract. Seems like a no-brainer to me. If Mel and Sirius could ever figure out how to advertise locally which i think they are trying to do. That revenue number could grow by a significant number.
Content Concerns: I am a fan. Howard to me is like a fine wine he gets better with age. He is one of the best interviewers on the planet and not only did he invent the banter you hear so often on every show he perfected it. His ability to see the comedy in someone like Eric the midget is genius and unmatched in my opinion.
I know that the entire radio business is in trouble, but do you really think Sirius XM is in the best position to pay Stern? On top of the company's well-known financial woes, there is the consideration that Sirius XM cannot charge as much as terrestrial stations can for commercials on the show because the satellite audience is lower.
Also, at this point, keeping Stern on satellite exclusively has little or no upside potential for Sirius XM, so his mega-salary amounts to a maintenance expense -- if you pay it, you do so to keep from losing customers you've already got. Anyone who loves Stern knows he's on Sirius, and he has been for a while, so the true believers are already on board. New fans aren't being recruited, by and large, because Stern is essentially gagged and tied up in the closet by being relegated to form of the media that fewer than 10 percent of American have access to.
In contrast, Stern has limitless growth possibilities on terrestrial, given the number of markets, the potential for ever-increasing ad revenues as ratings increase, and the chance to appeal to a new generation of fans. Howard Stern and satellite radio are a poor fit, but a hybrid approach with Stern doing a shorter daily show for terrestrial each day could help correct that, and would make him a lot better value for Sirius XM.
Alright, so coming at it from a marketing perspective, Sirius would virtually split the cost of his salary with terrestrial radio, sort of anyway. This is sort of like the deal was with O and A. The draw would be for terrestrial listeners to want to hear more content and have the show uncensored. I think I can see your point.
This is of course if any of these things actually happen. In certain respects, Howard is the best marketing aspect the company has at this point. But what happens if he retires?
"Fatal"?? haha...how many of us actually listen to Stern? I wager more people sign up to listen to baseball than listen to Stern.
Content is king...but there is a LOT of content on SiriusXM. If Stern requires too much $$ (especially for less hours, etc), I would just let him complete his year, the economy starts returning to form and SirusXM pockets the money for the balance sheet.
All the worry about Howard Stern is flat out silly. First do people forget, that XM radio had about 8million subscribers without Howard Stern? People have been fooled to think that most only got SIRIUS XM because of howard stern. No question, he has a lot of fans in the country. However, if he leaves where is he going to go? He can not go back to terrestrial radio, because his act would be too old. Think about it, in the 1980's people loved him because he was so on the edge and controversial. Now if he went back and had to be censored, what could he do other than get fired again? SIRIUS XM would always offer him or his replacement unmatched freedom. No censorship. he can not go back to the teenage or early 20's crowd and be big to them. Its a different world than 1980. His fans need to hear him uncensored and on 24 hours like he is on SIRIUS XM. If he retires, then good riddens. Maybe they can go after the next big guy...Rush Limbaugh or somebody....Someone who could actually sell commercials on his program to! other than cougarlife and pennystockchasher...
Yes, and I agree that Howard Stern is at this point the biggest single marketable aspect of Sirius XM.
Just looking at the ratings, if Stern were to retire or be dropped from Sirius XM for any other reason, I think there would be a core group of 1.5 to 2 million subscribers (roughly ten percent of the total) who would be most strongly affected, with additional ones who listen to Stern less often also potentially upset by his exodus. They wouldn't all cancel, but if half did, I think it would be a blow to the company, but considering the money they would save by not having Stern, probably not a devastating one.
Hey disappointed but optimistic shareholder - I have been listening to Howard for 20 years. He and his show have definitely evolved over the years, but then so have his listeners, and so has the world in general. One thing that hasn't changed is this: he and his show still make me laugh my ass off more often, and more consistently, than anything else in my entire so called life! Sure, not every bit is a home run, and not every show is memorable, but every so often something will happen that is so hysterical, there have been times I have had to pull off the road from laughing so hard. Humor is a personal thing; I don't expect everybody to "get it" when it comes to the Stern show. By the same token, I don't understand how people can laugh at the dreadful crap on television. People have been trained for years to laugh on cue right along with the laugh track, and televisions attemps at humor are so far beyond lame.... it borders on insulting. I have laughed more at wakes and funerals than I have watching most any sitcom on the idiot box.
Howard Stern, as an interviewer, puts most people to shame. He makes Jay Leno look like a village idiot; Letterman doesn't fare much better. Conan O'Brian is halfway decent. Of course these guys have 9 minutes, and all they do is lob pre-interview scripted softball questions to the quests - who are only on to promote a book or movie.
Your Eric the Midget reference is right on. Howard has something that most people simply do not possess; it's called intuition. Instincts. He has a sixth sense when it comes to evaluating and discerning what is funny, who is funny, and the potential of a given scenario to be funny. He uses this intuition to extract more information out of somebody in five minutes than most people could get in an hour.
I know some people can't stand him, and to them I say "that's fine." You don't have to listen. I can't stand Opran Winfrey, yet a lot of people worship her. That's fine too, although I think they're off their rockers. When it comes to Howie, you and I are on the same wavelength. Like a fine wine; yeah, that's it!
Show Howie (and Mel) the door... Sure you'll lose subs, probably two, three at most. He's a has been, get over it!
I think the difference between Oprah and Howard, besides the obvious, is that the network still makes money off of Oprah's program, even with her huge salary. Howard's current salary is weighing SIRI down.
Mel resembles an aging, skin-damaged Gary "Baba Booey" Dellabate from Stern's show.
"Rush Limbaugh" "Good Riddens" Those are the first two laughable parts of your comment. Learn how to spell. Rush Limbaugh - you have to be high. Talk about a hypocrite.
I don't know if you've noticed but it's Sirius/XM and not XM/Sirius. XM was floundering because Sirius had aggressively taken listenership and subscribers from XM. Look at the previoius growth. So much for Opie and Dorothy. Not even those two giants could hold Stern off.
Sirius XM, there's to many things to say about this honestly, without Howard stern I don't think they can make it, when they where separate XM had a good service, but always remember that Sirius bought XM, I can tell you that SIRIUS XM will not survive 2010 without Howard Stern its impossible.
If Howard leaves, maybe the old Sirius subscribers will leave as well. But the XM side, who probably are not paying to hear his show, will remain, and still be unhappy about the raping of the old XM music content. Nothing against Howard, the times I have heard his show I liked what I heard. But if I were to shell out extra money for the Best Of Sirius on XM it would be for the NFL on those days that I am in the office on Sunday, not for Stern, NASCAR, Martha Stewart, or any of the other Sirius provided content. Just like I wouldn't expect an original Sirius sub to pay extra to get O&A, Home Plate without games, and the NHL.
I keep hearing "where is Stern going to go if he leaves Sirius/XM". That question is easy. He can open his own internet radio show and make it available to every cell phone and iPod (with a podcast) on Earth, for a fee.
Howard may be old and losing his pull, but he is still very smart in making deals and money. He won't settle for SIRI calling the shots. He'll either retire or up and leave and open his own show elsewhere. There is no need to go back to terrestrial.
If SIRI can't keep Stern for under $200 million for 5 years, than dump him. His core audience has mostly outgrown him, and nobody under 25 really cares about him anyway. Hell, I stopped listening to him 10 years ago, and I'm sure most folks my age will get over him real quick if he leaves SIRI. He's past his prime, period.
Those that keep saying sirius/xm will fail w/o stern, ad nauseam. Are out of their over inflated hoo hoo heads.
If the king of all medicore. Is all that the drolls keep insisting he is.
Then why on earth is there a national
campaign plastering the hook nosed jew's mug all over the country?
Because you can't plaster the mugs of the obscure, talentless and unknown power tranny twins known as O n A.
At the time the merger was proposed, it was supposed to be a "merger of equals," but XM indeed had some financial woes due largely to the operation of terrestrial repeaters and violating FCC regulations with the strength of FM modulators on some of its retail radios, so the deal was consummated with Sirius taking over XM.
However, XM's customers weren't responsible for the company's financial decisions, and as they represented the bigger block of subscribers, it was not in Sirius' best interest, or the best interest of these customers, to eliminate XM channels and replace them with Sirius channels.
I would argue that time would have shown XM's business model to be more sustainable than that of Sirius, for the ratings showed that XM customers spread their listening across the entire lineup, whereas Sirius listeners focused heavily on a few channels, such as those of Howard Stern, that were very costly to operate.
But, your point that XM was taken over by Sirius is certainly correct, and I can find evidence of that unfortunate fact every time I turn on my one remaining activated radio.
XM SURVIVED WITHOUT HOWARD...WHY WOULDNT SIRIUS??
Last cume stern had 1.22 million listeners total. O&A had 215,000. stern is over paid at 5 million a year.