XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. said on Thursday that data reported by the NPD Group has become increasingly less applicable in showing the company's retail sales performance.

"NPD data is less relevant today than it was five to three years ago," said CEO Nate Davis. "We no longer use NPD as a lead indicator in the after-market."

"We estimate that when we launched our service... NPD measured over 70% of XM's retail sales. In 2007, we estimate that NPD represents less than 40% of XM Satellite Radio's retail sales.

"Roughly 60% of our sales come from direct or non-NPD reporting channels."

The company told investors that a key focus for XM's aftermarket segment is to grow direct internet sales volume. Other retail opportunities include customer service sales and cross-selling promotions with automotive partners.

"XM has consciously worked to grow these more cost-effective means of retail distribution, which is one of the important reasons why our retail [subscriber acquisition] charges are well-managed and why our quarterly retail gross adds are consistently higher than NPD reporting outlets would suggest," said Davis.

In the fourth-quarter of last year, XM reported that it added 364,000 gross retail subscribers which resulted in an additions of 99,000 net retail subscriber to its base.

During Thursday's earnings call with investors, XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. said the company would have 10.3 million subscribers if they counted promotional subscribers when a new vehicle is manufactured.

"XM does not report promotional subscribers when a new vehicle is manufactured but only counts it as a subscriber when the vehicle is sold and when we have a paid subscription," said CEO Nate Davis. "So investors often ask for the number of XM-equipped vehicles that have been manufactured and shipped to dealers but not included in our subscriber numbers. This is the so-called parking lot subs number."

The company said that automotive partners report that XM-equipped vehicles reached 1.255 million at the end of 2007.

"In essence then, if XM included these unsold vehicles in its subscriber totals, then we would have a subscriber total of roughly 10.3 million," said Davis.

XM reported this morning that they ended 2007 with just over 9 million subscribers.

During Sirius Satellite Radio's earnings call earlier this week, CFO David Frear said that these so-called "parking lot subs" accounted for 11% of the company's subscriber base. Sirius said it ended 2007 with 8,321,785 subscribers.

"...the cars that have yet to sell through are about 11% of the base at the year end," said Frear to investors on Tuesday. "It is up slightly from the third quarter and up from the prior year end where I think it was about 9%."

Sirius counts these "parking lot" subscribers because they get paid for them, and so they include them in their metrics.

Still, the 10.3 million number may not be true comparison, as XM may not get paid for all of the 1.255 million unsold vehicles. XM receives payment from automakers such as GM and Honda, but they do not from others like Toyota, Hyundai and Nissan. Still, the latter are still ramping up in their penetration rate, so the "true" number is likely substantial regardless.

Davis didn't make this into an XM vs. Sirius moment though.

"This OEM growth story is true for both satellite radio providers," the CEO added. "In fact, with Sirius reporting 4.2 million gross additions in 2007 and XM having 4.5 million gross additions on a comparable basis, each company would have added the largest number of yearly gross additions in the history of either company."

[Transcripts via SeekingAlpha: XM, Sirius]

XM Satellite Radio and AutoTrader have launched an online marketing program targeting used car buyers.

AutoTrader.com is now displaying an XM logo tile on the details page for every XM-equipped used vehicle from General Motors and American Honda Motor Co. to inform consumers that the vehicle is equipped with XM Radio functionality. 

Consumers will also be able to download a printable AutoBiography brochure that will also include the XM tile.

This includes all additional automotive classified/search sites that are "powered by AutoTrader.com" - so any XM-equipped GM, Honda and Acura vehicle will also show the XM feature

All pre-owned GM, Acura and Honda vehicles (whether they be "Certified" or "Non-Certified") equipped with factory-installed XM Satellite Radio are eligible for complimentary XM trial service and a waived activation fee.

Once the user clicks on the XM tile or text link, they go to a page (like this one) that describes the special XM Radio subscription offer.

View a screenshot of an example AutoTrader page after the jump...

(Pictured, from left to right: Pete Rock, Maureen Yancey (Dilla's mom) and Talib Kweli)

Here's some photos from last night's Dilla Day tribute at the XM Performance Theater in Washington DC.

(Raw Poetic and Grap Luva)

(KB and Doc doing the Dilla Day intro)

If you missed it, the Dilla Day tribute will be rebroadcast on XMX (ch 2) this Sunday at 1am ET, 9am ET and at 5pm ET. Note that since XMX is a relatively "clean" channel, the encore broadcast will probably not feature Dilla's version of "F*ck the Police" for obvious reasons.

The unedited rebroadcast of the full Dilla Day show will air on The Rhyme (ch 65) on Wednesday (2/27) 6pm ET, and on Saturday (3/1) at 1pm ET.

You can also download the entire show (in two parts) and check out more photos of the event at ProgHipHop.com (Subsoniq's website).

A quick glimpse at the Merge-O-Meter shows that it has been 367 days since the Sirius-XM merger was announced.

And the Wall Street Journal Deal Journal Blogs has assembled together an interesting set of metrics that put the whole transaction into perspective.

What Deal Journal did was take a look at all the merger/acquisition activity (courtesy of FactSet MergerMetrics) since the Sirius-XM merger was announced, and they came up with a series of numbers. And since I'm a LOST fanboy, I figured I'd make those numbers look like the countdown clock... just because.

So here goes...

349: The number of announced definitive full acquisitions of US publicly traded companies, since the Sirius-XM announcement.

230: The number of those deals that were completed.

97: The number of those deals still pending.

22: The number of those deals that were withdrawn.

The men's magazine Best Life has named XM's POTUS '08 channel "one of the 10 most important voices to listen to" this election year.

Contributor Jason Daley wrote:

"POTUS '08 XM Channel 130, created in cooperation with C-SPAN, is completely commercial-free and covers the election nonstop 24 hours a day. Think of it as the triple-bacon cheeseburger of campaign coverage."

POTUS '08 is in good company. The top-ten list includes political science godhead Larry Sabato, National Review blogger Jim Geraghty, and the BBC's Justin Webb.

The most irreverent guy on the list is LA Weekly's political cartoonist Mr. Fish, who is enormously successful at offending just about everybody across the political spectrum (check out some examples here, here, here and here).

Check out the full story here.

XM's Subsoniq and the Red Bull Music Academy will be holding "Dilla Day" tonight at the XM Performance Theatre in Washington DC.

A live band (The Players & Friends) will be performing classic J Dilla tracks, accompanied by emcees and vocalists. Special guests include Maureen Yancey (Dilla's mom), Pete Rock and Talib Kweli.

"Dilla Day" will celebrate the life and legend of the innovative and influential hip-hop producer J Dilla, who rose from Detroit's underground Hip-Hop scene in the mid-90s.

Dilla (real name James Yancey) died about two years ago of cardiac arrest at his home in Los Angeles. He had reportedly been suffering from lupus and had been hospitalized for pneumonia just prior to his death. J Dilla was only 32.

The event will be broadcast live on XM's The Rhyme (ch 65) tonight from 8-10pm ET.

The American Antitrust Institute the other day asked the Department of Justice to file suit against the proposed merger of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.

AAI, which filed against the Sirius-XM merger back in June, holds strong to its assertion that the merger would "lessen competition, or to tend to create a monopoly," in violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act.

As far as I can tell, the American Antitrust Institute holds absolutely no relationship to the NAB, or has any ulterior motives here. They are simply a nonprofit organization that advocates an aggressive stance toward antitrust enforcement.

Under AAI's definition, satellite radio stands alone in its relevant market:

"Although the merger parties posit many alternatives, including everything audio from AM/FM radio, to Internet radio, to MP3 players and iPods, none of these offer the unique nationwide coverage of satellite radio, content, features, and ability to aggregate demand. There is no evidence, as required under the Merger Guidelines, that any of the audio alternatives proposed for inclusion in the market definition by the merger parties constrain the ability of the merged firm to increase prices."

Oddly, I don't see any mention of mobile audio (streaming audio to cellphones) in their letter. Mobile audio, in my opinion, is the most direct form of competition if you want to define it as a "nationwide multichannel mobile audio entertainment subscription service" as the NAB calls it. And with companies like mSpot, who already have over 1 million subscribers (not to mention the backing of several terrestrial radio companies like ABC Radio, Clear Channel and others), it's hard to say that mobile audio is "burgeoning."

Still, of all the arguments against the merger, AAI has consistently given the best ones to support their views. I know I'm from the "pro-merger camp" and all, but I have to give AAI credit for stating their case better than most. It all boils down to how the relevant market is defined, and that ultimately, is up to regulators to decide.

[FMQB, Wired]

XM's Oprah and Friends channel was awarded with three Grace Awards from the American Women in Radio and Television. Dr. Maya Angelou, "The Gayle King Show" and "Oprah & Friends" producer Annette Flournoy were among the recipients of the 33rd Annual Gracie Awards.

Last year, XM's Oprah & Friends channel won two Grace Awards, for "The Jean Chatzky Show" and Harpo Radio producer Katherine Kelly.

Dr. Maya Angelou, renowned author, actress and activist, has been recognized with the "Individual Achievement Award for Outstanding Host (Information)" for her weekly XM program, "The Dr. Maya Angelou Show."

Gayle King and the production staff for King's popular daily XM program, "The Gayle King Show," have received the award for "Outstanding Talk Show."

Harpo Radio producer Annette Flournoy has also been recognized with the "Individual Achievement Award for Outstanding Producer (News Series of Special)" for her work on the "Oprah & Friends" channel.

The Gracie Awards recognize exemplary programming created for women, by women and about women in all facets of electronic media.

Like many, I was mighty skeptical of the prospects of "golf on the radio" back when XM signed with the PGA in 2005.

But XM put a lot of effort into the relationship - offering up 1,000 XM radios for spectators to use throughout the day at the tournaments. They even launched a humorous TV commercial to celebrate the partnership. Still, I'll admit, I was a skeptic.

Fast forward to today.

XM Satellite Radio just recently signed a multiyear extension of their agreement with the PGA Tour. That original four-year agreement between XM and the PGA was set to expire at the end of this year.

Turns out, the PGA Tour Network (ch 146) is quite the hit.

According to the PGA Tour, the channel draws an audience in the range of 460,000 to 2 million listeners, for an average of about 1 million. Ad sales for the channel are solid, which is reportedly one of the reasons why XM was inclined to renew the deal.

"There were a lot of skeptics about this venture, and I'm not just talking internally," Eric Logan, Executive VP at XM, told Washington Business Journal. "I don't think many people thought it had a chance of getting launched, and now that we're renewing it, the same skeptics are like, 'Huh, must be working.'"

Chalk me up as one of those skeptics who's dumbfounded.

It's a testament to the passion (ok fine, obsession) of golf fans, and to XM's hiring of veteran sportscasters who know how to "paint the picture" for the listener.