Watching the satellites
Several years ago if one were to ask my opinion on it, I would have said I'd never pay for 'radio'. Meaning, I would not pay for the priviledge of listening to radio via satellite as long as there was good terrestrial radio around. Well, thanks to Clear Channels, SInclair Broadcasting and a couple other megaconglomerates buying up, homogenizing and ruining what remained of 'conventional' broadcast FM radio (AM had long since degenerated into Jesus-spitting, drooling rightwing jawboneing EMI a long time ago), I bit the bullet and signed up for Sirius satellite. It's been a welcome respite from the tyrrany of broadcast for me going on 5 years now.
And now something looms on the horizon with the potential to ruin that for me.
It seems that the longtime rumblings of the two major players in satellite radio broadcasting, XM and Sirius, merging into one company is gaining momentum. As with any sort of merger such as this, the benefit is for the companies and their shareholders. And, as history has always shown, the customers end up with the short end of the deal, with higher prices, less compelling content, poorer service and the like. Mark my words, if this merger happens, subscriber rates will go up, commercials will invade the currently commercial-free music channels like a cancer and I will kiss the service goodbye. I'll miss lfkbear's wonderful morning show, the music channels I've come to appreciate on long trips and such. But if my doomsday scenario starts becoming reality, I'm voting with my dollars and conscience.
Federal regulators recently put the kibosh on a merger of the two big DBS television providers DirecTV and Dish Network (I subscribe to the latter), so there is some hope that the same will hold true for the radio services. If any of the past reading I have done about this merger holds true, there are somehow fewer roadblocks to the XM/Sirius deal to overcome and are more likely to pass.
At least there is still 'net radio. Or will there be?
And now something looms on the horizon with the potential to ruin that for me.
It seems that the longtime rumblings of the two major players in satellite radio broadcasting, XM and Sirius, merging into one company is gaining momentum. As with any sort of merger such as this, the benefit is for the companies and their shareholders. And, as history has always shown, the customers end up with the short end of the deal, with higher prices, less compelling content, poorer service and the like. Mark my words, if this merger happens, subscriber rates will go up, commercials will invade the currently commercial-free music channels like a cancer and I will kiss the service goodbye. I'll miss lfkbear's wonderful morning show, the music channels I've come to appreciate on long trips and such. But if my doomsday scenario starts becoming reality, I'm voting with my dollars and conscience.
Federal regulators recently put the kibosh on a merger of the two big DBS television providers DirecTV and Dish Network (I subscribe to the latter), so there is some hope that the same will hold true for the radio services. If any of the past reading I have done about this merger holds true, there are somehow fewer roadblocks to the XM/Sirius deal to overcome and are more likely to pass.
At least there is still 'net radio. Or will there be?