Sirius and XM merger?

[Michael Kaiser]

This is the 1st I've heard of it... I have never listened to satellite radio.

But, what would it take to get the GaragePunk Podcast Network on satellite radio?
Sponsors.

Would something like that be feasible? Could it remain the GaragePunk Podcast Network as we know it, or would it by default be forced to go the route of other "underground" garage rock radio?

Just some thoughts, interesting though. Discuss!

[Sectmaniac]

I think there's still lots of corporate money behind satellite radio... I have heard Sirius and it's cool (compared to regular radio nowwadays), but it's still very corporate and controlled... especially Little Steven's "Underground" Garage... there's nothing "underground" about Kelly Osbourne and Bruce Springsteen.

[MikeL]

I'm a Sirius subscriber, and I listen to the Underground Garage for the most part. Yes, I'll admit Little Steven throws in stuff that's not really "underground," but I still love the channel, because it's turned me onto a lot of stuff that I didn't know about before. I recently bought CDs by Syl Sylvain and the Rich Kids, and I plan on getting stuff from the Mummies and Vertebrats in the near future.

BTW, I happen to like that song by Kelly Osbourne, "Come Dig Me Out." LS said he discovered it by accident when one of his employees was playing it on his computer at work. No, it's not a "garage" song, but it's still a great song. Very punk like, at least.

As for playing Springsteen, well, lets face it, he does have a vested interest in promoting the new album. I'm not crazy about the new album, but I can live with it. There are a few older Springsteen songs that LS plays which do have a "garagey" sound, i.e. select tracks from "Darkness on the Edge of Town" and "The River."

I'd also like to point out that I'm glad LS throws some variety into the mix, because if he played nothing but "pure" garage rock, I would get bored with it.

As for sponsors, you really don't need them for satellite radio. You just have to convince Sirius or XM to give you your own channel. Sponsors are needed for syndicated shows on terrestrial radio.

As for the merger itself, I have mixed feelings on this. On one hand, it could help to keep satellite radio in business, but on the other hand, I'm worried that making it one company will jack up the subscription rates because of the lack of competition.

[theresa k.]

as someone who has worked on shows on both of the satellite providers, i can tell you that from day 1, i figured they were going to have to merge... XM has better technology; Sirius has a lot more heavy hitter celebrity DJs... but they are competing for the same slice of audience with the same business model and parallel third party partners in content sharing (ie: The Dish, etc)

i am also fairly certain, given the way mergers & acquisitions work, when those two outlets become one, a lot of the shows that are similar to each other will be cut down severely. that's a by-product of M&A anyway....

sponsors are not needed for having a show/channel on either XM or Sirius BUT, that said, the programmer needs to have a LOT OF CLOUT in order to draw listeners and new subscribers. you can be a legit DJ and get a shift on an existing channel within either of those outlets but you DO have to bring your listenership with you. there are a LOT of off-air things that you need to do too.

its way way more complicated than i can explain here

but in a nutshell - YES pretty much a merger WILL jack up subscription rates because of lack of competition (which also suggests that the FCC and FTC will be looking at the merger with a microscope) BUT more than that... stockholders will want a return on their investment and in order to buoy stock, they're gonna have to EARN more and the quickest way is to raise prices

capitalism 101

[MikeL]

Just as long as the rise in subscription rates isn't too ridiculous, I can handle it.

And they'd better keep the Underground Garage channel on the air, since it is something totally unique. I know both companies each have their own channels for punk, hair metal, oldies, etc., and I know they have to eliminate redundancy, and I know some people are going to be pissed about losing their favorite channels, and I feel bad for their losses, but PLEASE don't touch the Underground Garage.