There's a new XM commercial out called the "XM-erator" - and it's pretty neat in my opinion. Watch it below:

One of the key thing about XM's latest batch of commercials is the music. I love that. They select a tune that matches with the theme of the spot, and that just seems to work. This commercial is tied to an online ad campaign (which, if you haven't noticed, are everywhere recently).

Anyway, I just thought it was neat as we're in the midsts of the final stretch of merger madness.

[XM]
Thanks Roland!

UPDATE: There have been several requests for what the song is for this commercial. The artist is DJ Mehdi, and the song is “I Am Somebody” - you can hear the full song on his MySpace page.

Despite a report from Bear Stearns analyst Robert Peck, who predicts that a DOJ decision could arrive as soon as today or Monday, Bank of America analyst Jonathan Jacoby advises clients to remain "cautious" - deal or no deal.

Jacoby has remained as the devil's advocate throughout the merger proceedings, which is a good thing because it helps keep some of the more irrationally exuberant investors grounded (to a degree). Historically he's been very skeptical of the merger prospects (putting chances of approval roughly around ~30%). The interesting thing in his most recent research note, though, is that Jacoby does not dispute what Peck is reporting.

Much of the Bank of America analyst's conclusions have been based on information from DC contacts, but we don't hear about them in this note. Instead, Jacoby brings to light the high hurdles that XM-Sirius need to overcome to get approval (and there's no denying that this isn't your rubber-stamp kind of merger). If the deal is not approved, he points to significant downside. And even if the deal is approved, he feels there's not much upside.

"However, we are not ‘naïve.’ We think investors will most likely run these stocks post-merger approval," Jacoby notes.

To me, it's a significant development when the naysayers stop saying "nay."

Peck and Jacoby have been on two sides of the coin for this merger. With no significant information coming from BofA's sources disputing the information of Bear Stearns, well, I'd say that's pretty telling.

A decision by the Department of Justice on the merger between Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. could come as early as today or Monday, according to an analyst note issued this morning.

Bear Stearns analyst Robert Peck issued a research note this morning stating that a decision by the DOJ is imminent. According to Peck, conversations with their contacts in DC suggest that a DOJ decision could come as early as today or Monday.

Further, the Bear Stearns analyst believes that junior staffers at the DOJ are recommending blocking the merger, but that higher officer deputy officials likely disagree with the junior staff recommendation. The analyst expects Tom Barnett likely will rule along with the higher officials and announce that the DOJ will not be blocking the deal.

This is consistent with a Cowen & Co. note issued earlier this month, which also said that Antitrust Chief Tom Barnett is likely to approve the deal, "despite a staff recommendation against the deal."

Bear Stearns' Bob Peck also feels that the FCC has been coordinating its actions with the DOJ, and that an FCC decision will likely come near this year's end.

Chalk this up as the feel-good story of the day. XM's all-politics all-the-time channel, POTUS '08 (ch 130), started the day today with a reminder that there's an entire audience of listeners who might not be of voting age... but are still pretty darn smart.

Producer Joanna Welch came upon a unique letter (not email, mind you) this morning from Sophia McCrimmen, who turns out to be an 8-year-old and an avid politics and POTUS fan. Sure, Sophia might have misspelled a few words (don't we all?), but that doesn't diminish the fact that the 3rd grader noticed something that the POTUS pros did not.

"I love lisning to your shows!" she wrote. "I love politics so much! I just have one problem, you are underestimating the number of days until the election! You are forgeting that 2008 is a leap year!...Plese add one day too your total to acount for leap day. Keep up the good work.

"P.S. Can you mabie read this on the radio? That would be super cool!!!!

"P.P.S. If you have time. I don't want to mess you up."

Sophia was right. The POTUS folks had been counting the days to the '08 election incorrectly (ok, it was Scott Walterman's fault, but I'm not pointing any fingers). So "1600" host Rebecca Roberts (pictured above) got Sophia on the phone.

You can hear her three-minute on-air interview with Sophia below, or by clicking here.

[Los Angeles Times Blogs]

The XM Satellite Radio MLB Home Plate broadcast team is headed down to Nashville next week for baseball’s annual winter meetings.

If you’re a hardcore baseball fan, the winter meetings have more twists and turns than a Telemundo soap opera... just, without the cleavage and snazzy soundtrack. Baseball's bigwigs come to gather at Nashville’s Gaylord Opryland hotel for four days of trading and deal-making.

And XM's MLB Home Plate (ch 175) will have live, round-the-clock coverage of the meetings from December 3rd to December 6th.

XM on-air hosts Mark Patrick, Buck Martinez, Charley Steiner, Kevin Kennedy, Billy Ripken, Ronnie Lane, and Joe Castellano will be on site to report on the latest deals, day and night.

MLB Home Plate will be stationed at multiple locations in the hotel to deliver breaking news as it happens. The live coverage from Nashville starts Monday morning at 6am ET.

It’s sweet relief for baseball addicts counting the days until spring training.

XM subscribers will be able to hear seven different broadcasts of the 2007 Big 12, SEC, and ACC football championship games this Saturday, December 1st.

XM Sports Nation will also be live from the three host cities with exclusive pre-game coverage on Friday and Saturday.

• Top-ranked Missouri plays no. 9 Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship Game on Saturday at 8 pm ET and XM will air the national radio broadcast on Big 12 Channel 241.
• The SEC Championship Game pits fifth-ranked LSU against no. 14 Tennessee on Saturday at 4pm ET. XM will air the national radio broadcast on SEC Channel 199, the LSU broadcast on SEC Channel 200 and the Tennessee broadcast on SEC Channel 201.
• The ACC Championship Game will kick off Saturday at 1pm ET as sixth-ranked Virginia Tech takes on no. 12 Boston College. XM will air the national radio broadcast on ACC channel 190, the Boston College broadcast on ACC channel 191 and the Virginia Tech broadcast on ACC channel 192.

XM Sports Nation (ch 144) anchor T.J. Rives will be live from SEC Fanfare in Atlanta on the AT&T Press Box stage for game previews on Friday 6-9am ET and 1-3pm ET; and Saturday 10am - 2pm ET. XMSN analyst Gino Torretta will join sportscaster Earl Forcey in Jacksonville, Florida, for pre- game coverage of the ACC championship on Friday 1-3pm ET and Saturday 7-10am ET. XMSN's Scott Jackson and Kevin Blackistone will be at San Antonio's Alamodome to preview the Big 12 championship on Saturday from 3pm to 7pm ET.

Check out more info on XM's coverage of Championship Saturday here.

Wall Street Journal editorial board member Jason Riley talks with Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin and XM Chairman Gary Parsons about their merger plans.

Check out the video below (Email/RSS folks might need to click to watch):

Representative Rick Boucher (D-VA) wrote a piece that ran in both the Washington Times (yesterday) and a similar piece that ran in BusinessWeek (a week or so ago).

In both, Boucher dismisses antitrust concerns by building a case as to why satellite radio is part of a greater "audio entertainment" market, and argues that the Sirius-XM merger would benefit listeners.

"At first blush, one might conclude that a combination of the only two providers of this satellite-based service would be an obvious antitrust abridgement. In fact, the 'bumper sticker-like' campaign of merger opponents stresses the harm of a 2-to-1 combination.

The reality of the relevant market, however, is both more subtle and more compelling."

I think that's the basis of this entire argument. Whether you consider satellite radio to be within its own silo, or whether you feel that satellite radio directly competes with other audio mediums.

Rep. Boucher addresses this debate in his piece, talking about his view of the competitive landscape:

"[Regulators] often ask, 'How far would a person have to drive in order to find a substitute?' In the case of XM and Sirius, consumers don't have to drive anywhere to find a competitive alternative: They just have to hit a different button on their car stereo."

It's that ease of switching between audio mediums that, in my opinion, is the biggest case for the merger. And ultimately, it's what protects the consumer from a combined company abusing "monopolistic" powers.

Aside from the argument about whether or not a merger would create a monopoly (which has been discussed here ad nauseum), I think it's great to see Sirius-XM getting this level of public political support. The NAB is quick to point out that they got X number of Congressmen to sign a document, but there's little in public support coming from those in Capitol Hill for their cause.

[BusinessWeek, Washington Times]

Consumer advocacy groups today urged the Federal Communications Commission to reject the proposed merger of satellite radio providers XM and Sirius, saying the deal would eliminate competition and negatively impact consumers.

The groups - which include the Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union and Free Press - filed a report Monday stating that the estimated $5 billion deal would reduce the number of channels and formats available and result in little cost savings.

"The proposed XM-Sirius merger is not in the interest of American consumers," said Dr. Mark Cooper, director of research for the Consumer Federation of America and lead author of the report.

"Leaving one company to monopolize the satellite radio industry would result in higher prices and fewer choices -- with no foreseeable public benefit."

The report - which claims to not "restate the case against the merger" but rather "focus on new data introduced into the record" - says the Sirius-XM merger would have negative side effects for both consumers and for the satellite radio industry. They feel that the deal would reduce the number of channels and formats available, result in fewer cost-saving incentives, and cause a dramatic drop in spending on talent and retail.

The groups say the companies have not made a sufficient case that the FCC should end its explicit prohibition on mergers between satellite licensees.

[Read the FCC Filing (PDF) via The Hollywood Reporter]

Following the sudden passing of Quiet Riot singer Kevin DuBrow, XM Satellite Radio’s Eddie Trunk will pay tribute to the musical legacy DuBrow left behind.

A special show will be airing this evening - Monday November 26th - at 6pm ET on XM’s 80s hard rock channel Boneyard (ch 41).

Kevin DuBrow, 52, was found dead on Sunday inside the rocker's Las Vegas home. The Clark County coroner's office is examining the body to determine the cause of death, according to TMZ.

Chavis Records, the label that issued Quiet Riot's last LP, Rehab, also confirmed the news.

"DuBrow's body was found by friends on Sunday, November 25, in his Las Vegas home," reads the label's website. "As I mourn his death with a heavy heart, I will remember hearing his voice and the music for the very first time on the radio back in 1983. I will remember all the great music Kevin and Quiet Riot gave to so many of us over the years and I will say, 'Thank you, Kevin. May you rest in peace.' "

[More on CNN]