XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio today confirmed that the companies are in discussions with the FCC Enforcement Bureau to settle outstanding enforcement matters.In 2006, the FCC started investigations about the compliance of certain radios that include FM transmitters with the Commission's rules, and the compliance of certain terrestrial repeaters. The companies hope to enter into a Consent Decree with the FCC to terminate these inquiries.
As part of a possible Consent Decree, the companies expect to agree to:
- A comprehensive compliance plan, and take steps to address any potentially non-compliant radios remaining in the hands of consumers
- Shut down 50 of XM's variant repeater towers, and shut down or bring into compliance an additional 50 variant terrestrial repeaters
- Bring into compliance or shut down up to 11 of Sirius' variant terrestrial repeaters (these were already shut off in October 2006)
- Make a voluntary contribution to the U.S. Treasury of approximately $17 million from XM, and approximately $2 million from Sirius.
The companies say that there can be no assurances regarding the ultimate outcome of these enforcement proceedings, including whether the FCC will approve Consent Decrees under discussion with the companies.
The NAB has been defeated!
Ryan - any insight as to why so much from XM, and so little from SIRIUS (not like it matters...as with a marriage, they share the debt)?
WTF - potentially shutting down up to 100 XM repeaters... Noooo that will not affect customers. Merger concessions are great for all!!
argh
I suspect cause maybe XM had more violations than Sirius.
Even if it was all Sirius bad doing, we're talking 1.3 cents a share.
Oh no!
I smell... victory.
Sorry NAB bitches... YOU LOSE!!!!
Why would anyone be selling their siri, xm stocks now???Please explain...
Some people bought, like me, bought a lot of shares at 1.83.
I'm hanging on for the ride. I'm already up a ridiculous amount of money, but hey I'm greedy.
Yea, XM had more violations on their repeaters...
I may sell today to take some profits. I got in at 1.99. It has moved up fast and it may settle back down a bit.
Fuck you, Struble, Bilko, and Fumbles!
My question -
Looks like this enforcement agreement goes on circulation separately at the FCC. Do we have to have a separate vote to get this approved as well?
Could delay this thing another 10 days if so.
I can't believe it is taking this long.
Explain to me how they can possibly do anything about any radios in the hands of consumers which have FM transmitters that are out of compliance? I know my radio is one of them and in no way am I giving it up. It works all through my house and it's great. The FCC can kiss my ass if it thinks it's getting its hands on my radio.
WSJ announces it's done.
Some will sell on the news... don't. Hold it. Do not get spooked now...
I have an old Roady2 (before the antenna thing that limits the fm transmission) that hasn't been working right (signal drops out for a second or two all the time). If they want to give me a new radio I'd be happy to hand over my old one...otherwise I'm going to have to buy one before I go postal because the dropouts are driving me nuts!!!
It's always amazing to me how the financial issues of this merger are the only considerations that seem to matter. Is it a monopoly? Yes. Is it creating a better product for the consumers - absolutely not. As an XM subscriber, I'm hardly looking forward to the shortening of the playlists. Oh yeah...I'm also looking forward to the minority programming that no subscribers to the services want, have called for, or will ultimately ever listen to. Thanks for that.
Ultimately, the only people that care about this are the stockholders. For the record, I am a stockholder of XM, so I should care as well. However, it just sucks that the financial concerns are allowed to overweigh the actual concerns of the people that use the product.
The merger will create a short term buzz that will temporarily raise the stock price - stockholders sell and make their money. Win for the stock people.
FCC rapes both companies and pockets a good amount of money "on the downlow" in exchange for their vote. Win for the FCC Commissioners.
Mel gets a big raise. Win for him.
The subscriber loses what they joined Satellite Radio for in the first place, and is given shorter playlists, forced payment for Stern's ridiculous contract, and 1/5th of the programming that we had available to us so that we can hear about black pride and power. Total loss for the subscriber, with no upside.
Don't sell.... it's tempting.... patience, patience, you've gone this far. SIRI and XMSR will equalize then move up.
Great, so now they want to take away my best radio's. The only ones that work through the entire house. And they want to shut down up to 100 repeater towers. And while prices will freeze for a few years I'm going to lose 1 out of 5 channels and need to buy new hardware without FM transmitters. Wait, how again does this merger benefit anyone but the stockholders?
@ JA, they can identify the radio ID of your older model hardware with great FM transmitter and refuse to activate it. They'll probably tell people it's an old radio and offer a free "upgrade" and you'll either go for it or have a brick they refuse to let you use.
Plowboy, how high will this go in the next month or so?
I love monopolies. Especially when I own them.
XMSR holders ...16-20 is likely in the next 1-3 months,
@Plowboy:
WSJ.com:
A majority of commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission have reached a deal to approve Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s long-pending purchase of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.
The final hold-out, Republican commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate, agreed to vote to approve the deal after winning several concessions from the companies involving enforcement issues.
"I think it's fair to say an agreement in principle has been reached," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said in an interview Thursday morning. "We're still trying to work out the language."
A deal was reached with the companies late Wednesday night to pave the way for ...
(subscription needed for the full story)
Lets hope HEAVY FINES, JAIL TIME, FCC LICENSE'S PULLED, and a BIG OLD NO! to "merge" MONOPOLY scheme's
Siri 3.3.50 -XMSR 13.50 -15.75 in 30 days.
Selling has stopped with both moving up, now equalized @ 4.5. It WILL ebb and flow over the day. Patience. The best money has NOT been remotely made.
Thank you Chris. It's just you, me and some HD radio ass that posts as AC that seem to get what's going on here. Everyone makes money while the reason we loved SDARS to begin with gets destroyed in the process.
Remember please that Sirius has 1.5 BILLION shares.... there are tons of people who hate these fricking stocks and would piss themselves to get OUT ASAP. This makes it hard for Sirius to build a base...but it will ...it is now backfilling.
XMSR is fully in the hands of Siri's price now. Upgrades and good news will flow bring siri to 3.00-3.50 and thereby the XMSR price,
It;s hard to build a base with 1.5 Billion shares in a "penny" stock. Expect a 1:2 stock offering within 90 days of deal closure... this will bring in Mutual funds like a bandit, driving the price up more.
@AC:
To make the plural of something, you add an 's', not " 's." I suggest you learn to write before you post on a website.
Chris, pfreak, you guys have been correct the whole way through. Those educated consumers who don't want to support this "merge" aka government bailout for 2 companies with the worst management teams in the radio industry have a great option:
HD Digital Radio • IT’S TIME TO UPGRADE!
HD Digital Radio. It's here. It's local. It's free. DISCOVER IT!
www.hdradio.com/
"Chris, pfreak, you guys have been correct the whole way through. Those educated consumers who don't want to support this "merge" aka government bailout for 2 companies with the worst management teams in the radio industry have a great option:"
Hey, wouldn't be a good thing for XM/SIRI to merge, "monopolize" the market, and drive their customers to HD Radio in droves?
Oh, probably cause that's bullshit you have pushed here on this site for the past year and a half.
You lose. GOOD DAY SIR.
I just love this quote from our FCC Chairman, to AC with love:
"I didn't see why it was necessary to impose a requirement on a radio manufacturer to include an HD chip," Martin said.
One last, fast opine, and I'll quit hogging the board.
People (me included) thought that out of the clear blue, one day the useless FCC would announce and the stocks would spike, and some of us would sell.. once again satrad and conventional thinking failed to be correct.
Now people scratch their heads (or asses) as this leaked more than Grandma's colander.
Common sense tells me that this combined entity is worth AT LEAST 11-13 million now (this is where it was 18 months ago) . This makes the new companies shares 3.0 billion total worth about 3.75 -4.00 bucks each.
This is the basis for my investing thesis for satrad. I'm staying in till my XMSR nets me 16-19 at least. This is not a quick dump as was anticipated.
Good luck to all,
Matt
"I didn't see why it was necessary to impose a requirement on a radio manufacturer to include an HD chip," Martin said. >>
To all you posters who treated Martin like a sewer rat, let it be said that he has been the pro-merger's best ally all along. Now NAB and other opponents can't come back and say they didn't get their fair hearing on the issues pertaining to this merger.
"Voluntary contribution to the Treasury"...
That's a gem.
tra la.
No; this is not a quick dump. The time to ditch is when this is complete and SIXM becomes an acquisition target. When we start hearing rumors of MSFT offering $5.50/sh, that's when you bail.
@Plowboy - but it looks like there's still some timid sellers out there, stock down by .02-.04 and hasn't moved upward yet.
Hahahahahah.... The HD radio alliance and Ibiquity bomb blew upin their face. They must now PAY auto manufacturers to install there shitty HD chipsets. FAIL!!
This comment is solid gold:
"I didn't see why it was necessary to impose a requirement on a radio manufacturer to include an HD chip," Martin said.
Why should XM and Sirius have to shut down repeaters? It's not like they interfere with turd radio.
Alright everybody let's give them a clap and now get on with the business at hand... very well then...
Just a quick comment on the voluntary payment to the treasury.... Isn't our taxes voluntary? Of course if you don't volunteer to give your money they com after you, but still. :-)
This is great, and I'm glad, even though Martin took forever to get this done, he saw the HD piece just like the georgetown bullshit as trying to ride coat tails. Satellite Radio has enough competition especially with phones starting to be a primary way to get music... Just wait till someone figures out bluetooth enough that you'll be able to stream music from your phone to your car audio system! :)
I'm happy... I've got 2 xm radios and 1 sirius. I hate that I can't hear xm in my truck unless I replace the module, and I hate that I don't have sirius at home or in my office. I love both services and the best of packages work really well for me. :-)
Now... Let's see how they handle this mess. Hopefully XM and Sirius have been breaking the law and communicating between the two of them so all the cool services can come together NOW, not a year from now!!!
"Why should XM and Sirius have to shut down repeaters? It's not like they interfere with turd radio."
A license is a license. It is non-negotiable when violations of the license occur. Each repeater must be licensed to operate in a given location. They must be authorized to broadcast from any given point -- this applies to any commercial medium/high-power transmissions, and Sirius and XM aren't exempt.
Hahahahahah.... The HD radio alliance and Ibiquity bomb blew upin their face. They must now PAY auto manufacturers to install there shitty HD chipsets. FAIL!!
This comment is solid gold:
"I didn't see why it was necessary to impose a requirement on a radio manufacturer to include an HD chip," Martin said.
to NAB brats-
umm, yeah...we're going to have to ask you to clean out your desk today, yeah...
Git-er.... not a surprise at all ... siri was off .30 at 9:45. I expect it will end up .10 -.15 today. Siri's daily trading would take almost 50 days to cycle. Think about the magnitude of 1.5 Billion shares changing hands.
Additionally, some of the SIRI sellers are going into XMSR. This and a 100+ down day for the DOW underscores what's happening.
"You lose. GOOD DAY SIR."
WRONG again blind, ignorant, (claimed) satradio fanboy.
AC DIDN'T lose
Terrestrial radio DIDN'T lose
It might take some time for everyone to grasp reality after the ignorant get done with their "victory" dance. But satellite radio and satellite radio subscribers are the one who lose. Why? The industry is stronger with 2 providers than just one, subscribers benefit greatly with 2 providers who directly compete for top billing.
Only the blind, and ignorant are posting cheers on the current "merge" MONOPOLY scheme updates. RA RA blind and ignorant now (IF Tate votes to approve) we as subscribers will no longer have a choice in providers when it comes to satellite radio. By the way blind and ignorant is 100% justified as a label for the minority here, not one of you can give a list of CONCRETE items this "merge" brings to benefit subscribers, because in the big picture, in reality there is none. This "merge" scheme does not benefit subscribers.
We all, as satellite radio subscribers lose with "merge".
Ok, for all of you idiots that wanted this, you're going to get what you deserve. Less choices, same money for less channels and most important much shorter playlists, just like regular radio. You should be overjoyed, This has been a deal privately benefitting just a hand full of executives on both sides that don't give a shit about you, the shareholders or the employees. They'll be laughing at you from the deck of their new yachts as they plan the self serving liquidation of another company with a board of directors stupid enough to hire them. It really SAD! These people are all corrupt.
I love monolopies...what are you talking about.... my yacht is getting a new satellite radio system as we speak. I need a new Captain BTW..... interested?
" Ok, for all of you idiots that wanted this, you're going to get what you deserve. Less choices, same money for less channels and most important much shorter playlists, just like regular radio. You should be overjoyed, This has been a deal privately benefitting just a hand full of executives on both sides that don't give a shit about you, the shareholders or the employees. They'll be laughing at you from the deck of their new yachts as they plan the self serving liquidation of another company with a board of directors stupid enough to hire them. It really SAD! These people are all corrupt."
lol @ NAB
"The subscriber loses what they joined Satellite Radio for in the first place, and is given shorter playlists, forced payment for Stern's ridiculous contract, and 1/5th of the programming that we had available to us so that we can hear about black pride and power. Total loss for the subscriber, with no upside." Chris
I agree with you 110%
Your dumb. Well see how you guys feel when they start bringing new products to market. Then you will be saying the merger was worth it. Open your fucking eyes.
I have 2 old XACT Visor's with a real strong FM transmitter. I ain't giving them up. The statement said they need a plan to address but there are no assurances as to the outcome. I suspect I'll get an ofer to upgrade. But will refuse. Hence - there was a plan but the outcome was negative.
I'm not going to get too bent out of shape over this. Chances are before any of these consents are taken care of the merged company ends up getting acquired. The irony of it all, is when that day comes, it could get acquired by one of the NAB's members. LOL
(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
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(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
and..... here.
(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
and..... here.
(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
and..... here.
(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
and..... here.
(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
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(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
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(YELLOW STICKY) >> X _________________________________
:)
...and......
here. (shortest word in the english dictionary).
[someone out there gets the joke]
Merrill Lynch analyst Jessica Reif Cohen issued a report today on Sirius and is bullish about the sector. Cohen, a media analyst is highly respected in the field, and likely offers insight from a media perspective. Of note, in the late 90’s, Cohen once called a stock price of $50 for CBS when it was trading at $18. One year later CBS surpassed the $50 mark.
Cohen sees the OEM channel as a growth story for SDARS and states in her report, “satellite radio is well on its way to becoming standard in new auto production.” She projects that installations will climb to 50% in calendar 2008 and to 85% by 2013, thereby yielding double digit growth despite plummeting OEM sales. Cohen notes that while sales of cars will be down in the neighborhood of 14% in the next couple of years, that a 66% growth in installations will still be a NET positive for SDARS.
Cohen maintains a BUY rating on Sirius and is raising the P.O. to $4.50 from $2.70.
Not the repeaters man! I get my office signal from a "non compliant" repeater. Even if adjusted, I'll lose my signal. Grrrrrr.
HAPPY DAYS...I THINK..WE'LL SEE I GUESS
hi, andar here, i just read your post. i like very much. agree to you, sir.