CNBC's Maria Bartiromo interviewed Liberty Media's president and CEO Greg Maffei yesterday to gather some insight into the decision to invest in Sirius XM Radio Inc. and to learn about the company's future prospects.
Maffei sounds highly optimistic (he sort of has to after dumping $530 million into the company) and talks about how the slagging automotive industry - even at 9 or 10 million units - still will help Sirius XM grow.
But what of the future?
Maffei only lightly touches on what future plans lay ahead, adding that the current figure of 19 million subscribers was a result from "just the auto market."
The next step, in Maffei's terms, is to look to make all radios into satellite radios - and to make a segment (not all of it) of the service free.
I have a funny feeling that the last point is a very important one - keep an eye out for signs of it.
[CNBC]
The next step, in Maffei's terms, is to look to make all radios into satellite radios - and to make a segment (not all of it) of the service free.
I have a funny feeling that the last point is a very important one - keep an eye out for signs of it.
[CNBC]
It can grow if they get rid of Jon Zellner, get deeper playlists , get dj's that don't blab at the beginning and ending of every song , and quit running the station i.d. every two songs .
SiriusFM will continue to lose money. In fact, its recently posted financial earnings prove exactly that.
The company wishes to expand its service Internet wide, but (as stated in the post above) until it refines and takes itself as a music delivery service rather than an FM Radio clone, it will have great difficulty competing against other online music services that are better and cheaper.
I'm sorry, but every time I see CNBC talking to a CEO of any failing company I'm going to think of that Jon Stewart clip that was recently floating around.
I have written to Zellner several times, specifically about Channel 5 and mostly about its boring and repetitious playlists. He keeps telling me certain genres like early 1950s MOR, don't "fit" but continues to invite feedback comments on the subject without doing anything about it. Funny, but it worked very well with XM which surpassed Sirius in nearly every subscription and decades listening category; but Zellner continues to take the road to disaster.
Liberty Media IS NOT a failing company.
I am now a Fan Liberty Media!!! They got Sirius XM out of a tough situation and things can only get better from here.
The blabbing DJs piss me the hell off! I paid money to get away from them, not to hear them try to be Howard!