Against the merger...

1. I'm satisfied with XM's content - there's nothing on Sirius that I want to hear.

2. Working with Mel & Howard is bad news for O&A.

Not sure - a lot of promises made in the conference this morning. It all sounds good if all goes as they say, but how often does that happen?

What will the name of the new comapany be?

I vote yes.

Merging will enable SatRad to better compete with testicle radio, the Internet, Ipods, etc... Rather than tearing each other apart. And as I said before, anything the NAB is against, I'm instantly for. Those assholes deserve to be put in their place.

I don't like the idea of a monopoly, but in this case, it makes sense financially. I'm also looking forward to getting some of the superior XM hardware and more reliable portable reception. Stern on the road will be nice! The Stiletto just seems overpriced for it's feature set.

As for O/A, they're so inconsequential, they don't really matter. I suspect Mel will deal with them one way or another. Perhaps they'll end up back on shitty "free" FM getting bleeped between 20 minute commercial breaks. Perhaps not. Frankly, I don't care. I doubt they're foremost on anyone's mind who matters. Just a pair of Stern wannabe clowns, anyway....

By the way, apparently, you can vote multiple times in this poll, so take any results with a grain of salt.

:(

I agree with MikeHunt. I'm generally against mergers that create a monopoly, but I really question what will/would happen when/if this merger fails. Will one or the other be bought out by someone, like NewsCorp did to DirecTV after their failed merger with EchoStar? Will one go dark?? This merger is a "last ditch effort" to save satellite radio, otherwise they would have said "screw off" when the option to merge came up. They understand it's required to survive.

I voted in favor, if you couldn't guess.

Mike: yes, you can VOTE more than once, but it doesn't count past the first vote.

would have loved to see this further breakdown

Siri sub- Love it
Siri sub- Hate it
XM sub- Love it
XM sub- Hate it

i bet 2-1 of the haters are XM subs, they still think they can win the fight alone..of course that is just my guess

I voted "not sure yet". My opinion will be determined by issues yet to be decided, such as: whether both companies' bandwidth are kept, how they set up the "a la carte" pricing, whether they work to combine the best channels from both services or create new dumbed-down versions, etc. Gonna be interesting.

I'm just concerned about the quality of ocntent over time. Do all XM subscribers really care about Howard and his buddies over at Sirius, I sure don't if not I would have switched.

I'm very happy with the music over at XM, I voted "not sure yet" with Mel being CEO, we'll see what happens to XM content.

No to the merger. XM and Sirius sub. I love them for different reasons and a merger will just ruin the good aspects of both. Oh, and one more time since it was brought up in the conference call, SCREW THE STUPID, COSTLY, AND WASTE OF BANDWIDTH FAILURE THAT IS BACKSEAT VIDEO.

Very much in favor of the merger; will get more programming from both services and it will be great if we can pick and choose. Am an XM sub now, but there are certain channels on Sirius that I would like to listen to.

Definitely against it. I have XM and would love to get NASCAR radio again, but I don't see anything good for the consumer. Internet and HD Radio are not real competitors. They're concerned with Podcasts? Stop it. Ipods are not competitors either, they have taken the place of Compact Discs. A combined company is not going to make a difference in those areas. The only real competitor is the free (computed programmed) FM Radio. The reason they are doing this is to compete on the Web/TV service to cars (bandwidth being sapped from radio) and for the big players like Mel to make millions in the deal. This merger will lead to poor music offerings, more commercials, and higher prices. Plus having Stern on one service will give him the ability to kick every other talk show off the air he doesn't like.

History Guy,
I agree with you on the video, drop it it is a waste. Now then, I do think the merger is a good thing. I would rather them take the "good aspects" of each company and combine them into one outstanding company. No more having to buy two radios and subscribing to two services. Give me the best of both worlds for one afordable price. If things are done properly then I think everyone will benifit from this.

Again this is "just_my_opinion"

History Guy,
I agree with you on the video, drop it it is a waste. Now then, I do think the merger is a good thing. I would rather them take the "good aspects" of each company and combine them into one outstanding company. No more having to buy two radios and subscribing to two services. Give me the best of both worlds for one afordable price. If things are done properly then I think everyone will benifit from this.

Again this is "just_my_opinion"

I'm a member of the dual-sub club, and I'm in the middle. It would be wonderful to finally have a singe receiver capable of receiving both services, especially if it can be done in a way that doesn't make it horribly awkward to control when driving. That said, there are things I love about both services; would both be dumbed down the least common denominator once “redundant” content would start getting cut? Do you really need both Sirius and XM’s version of a classic rock channel? Personally, I miss XM Music Lab in my car, so if the merger would open up bandwidth for a similar channel again, great. At the same time, XM gets the decades much better. And the list could go on, and on, and on…

>> "...SCREW THE STUPID, COSTLY, AND WASTE OF BANDWIDTH FAILURE THAT IS BACKSEAT VIDEO."

I have a theory about the development of Backseat Video...

I think Sirius came up with it with this merger in mind. With BV enabled, XiriuM (that's what I'm calling them for now) can now say they're a multimedia TV/Video/Radio content serving company rather than just radio. This puts them in a whole other competitive space than just against terrestrial radio. Besides "Free" radio, you've got Satellite TV, Cable TV, Ipods & Apple, the internet, etc...

Now that they're not exclusively Satellite Radio, there's no monopoly concerns. Bada-bing!! Merger approved!

It's a theory...

At first, I was very against the merger, but I voted "not sure yet". Reason? It's too early to call on how the pricing/ala carte programming will work. We don't know how the music channels will be run (let's HOPE it's Lee Abrams running the show). Also, we don't know if they will keep the combined bandwidth. IF they are forced to resell one of the bandwidths back to the FCC, then the merged company is doomed because of poor sound quality.

I am also nervous about Mel running the show. We all know Mel is marketing guru, but a radio programming guru? Not so sure. His business model is advertising and advertising revenue, not exactly consumer friendly.

Time will tell if this is a hero or a zero decision.

No. I hate Sirius. I don;t care for thier programming and I hate Howard Stern.

Chris: As a dual sub myself I'm 100% in agreement with you. There's aspects about both services that are unique to each other, and I would HATE to lose them once the redundancies (oh sorry, "synergies") are worked out.

Then again, it seems that the A La Carte selection may open up the option for both to coexist? My concern with A La Carte is that it limits the discovery of genres you never thought you might love.

Still too early to know of course, but for the record I want to have my cake and eat it too. :)

I'm not sure yet. My holdouts are the pricing and programming. If the music gets dumbed down to Sirius' commercial-free FM standards, I'll be on the no side. If the XM heads of programming are still in charge, I'll be on the yes side, unless the "a-la carte" pricing turns out to be too high.

Regardless, there are still lots of details still to come, and I'll be waiting for those.

I'm not in favor, because I fear the superior music choices on XM will be corrupted by the "DJ method" that Sirius has. I far prefer XM's version.

I also seriously enjoy the feature on my Skyfi/2 radio where I can search by band name for songs across the spectrum.

All I'd want from Sirius is the NFL. The rest I don't give a crap about - can be left behind, as far as I'm concerned.

Against the merger if it means removing "redundant" channels.

MikeHunt:

Yes, O&A, one of the most popular shows on XM is "inconsequential." How much Stern Kool Aid do you drink each day? Is it 1 gallon? 2? 3? 5?
I'll hang up the phone and wait for the answer...

I am willing to bet that a vast majority of those who voted YES to the deal are Sirius subscribers. On the MSG Boards it seems that Sirius people love this and XM people are not so sure.

I wiould love to see what the Demographic breakdown of this poll is. How man XMers voted yes versus how many Sirius Subers voted yes.

As a consumer, I'm totallly against this merger. Monopolies NEVER benefit the consumer, and this will be a monopoly. A combined company will have no incentive to keep prices down and develop better services. Look at the cable TV industry as an example. The cable companies, which have had monopolies in the regions in which they operate, has been claiming the mainstream television has always been a competitor and yet cable has a history of raising their rates much faster than the rate of inflation year after year after year. Why? Because they were the only choice in your town when it came to cable TV. Only recently, with the advent of satellite TV and the telcos looming entry into the television arena of they gotten "religion" and started paying attention to the customer. With the massive amount of debt that XM and Sirius are carrying, I guarantee that rates will go up at least $2 in the first year after the merger. You heard it here first.

this morning i wasn't sure.
now that i have looked at it a little better
i have no problem with the merger.
i am a lifetime sub. to sirius.
i love sirius.things change.
this is great for sat radio in general.
we get choice.that truck driver that loves
the braves and used to listen to bubba the love
sponge now has the choice to listen to both.
a stern fan that has never listend to opie and
anthony can hear them now and the next day stwich
back and listen to stern or vice versa.

the price will go up no matter what.
inflation , ect.but not now. i see 2010.

As a Sirius customer, and a shareholder in both systems, I see this as almost entirely bad news. Since when is less competition likely to lead to better service, greater choices, or lower costs for consumers? I don't expect any more truly "niche" programming from 300 channels than we get from circa 150. Who needs 200 rock-and-roll stations instead of 100?

As a shareholder, I will vote against, and if this goes forward I may do so by taking my custom elsewhere.

-- Donald

The consumer impact/approval of this boils down to one thing, imo. . .

Subscription availability *ala carte (as they are promising/promoting) [THIS IS A WIN/WIN for consumers]

Subscription availability via BUNDLING (as they are NOT saying, but are PROBABLY PLANNING)
[This is a CONSUMER RIP OFF DELUXE]

*with a reasonable minimum monthly fee

Listen consumers: This ONE POINT is where we need to hit the FCC and HIT THEM HARD. DO NOT ALLOW BUNDLING or we all are going to get ripped off BIG TIME.

With enough consumer insistence on this and pressure on FCC, we can get this requirement as part of the merger.
Then we can all win.

And it makes sense: programs that attract adequate following and pay their way STAY. The junk that doesn't, GOES.

Spread the word!

I'm an XM sub and I prefer baseball and Trucking Bozo. The only channel I want from sirius is EWTN. So I lean to yes with one hand on my remote and the other hand holding my nose; I can't figure out how to tell XM to get EWTN on its line-up. As for the shock-idiots: occasionally I slum over to 202 to hearing &€@%ing nonsense -- get, I need something to confess to my God. O&A or Stern who xirium'ing cares. Now, back to the Spring games!

The Squeaky Wheel,
I can tell you that I am XM sub and I am for the merger. As I said earlier, If they do things right I feel everyone can benifit from it.

I hope Sirius just gets the MLB and thats all I care about. Dump everything else.