Posted on 04/08/2008 7:11:05 AM PDT by paltz
Senator John Kerry (D-MA) is urging FCC Chairman Kevin Martin not to follow the DOJ's lead and "rubber-stamp" the approval of the proposed Sirius-XM Satellite Radio merger. In a letter to Martin last week, Kerry said that, if approved, the merger must contain conditions to prohibit the partnership of "exercising monopolistic powers" that could result in "diminished service at increased rates."
"While the Department of Justice has found that 'the evidence does not demonstrate that the proposed merger of XM and Sirius is likely to substantially lessen competition,' serious concerns remain as to how this merger will impact consumers if it is permitted to go forward," Kerry wrote.
He also noted that the Commission's 1997 order establishing the Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (DARS) prohibits a merger of the two satcasters. And to move forward,he wrote, would seem to "directly contradict the intent of the Commission in establishing this service." (04-03-08)
See, it evens extends here...Hey, you old media guys should put out your resume. CCU is DEAD, and radio, in its current form, is DEAD! I want my SatRad programming all day, and in every location. No other technology other than Sats exists that will allow a clean uninterrupted signal.
I just let the answering machine pick up when he calls.
I wonder what his stance will be if Heinz decides to merge with Hunts and form a single ketchup monopoly...
It would affect more households than this merger, but can you imagine his rage if the Republicans stepped in and tried to stop it?
Raises his hand...
I would care, quite a bit, in fact.
Discovering new types of music and rediscovering forgotten hits are but two of the joys of satellite radio.
Satellite radio puts the joy back into radio. Pure and simple...
P.S. MRN and PRN have terrestrial affiliates in most major cities - satellite is not your only option to listen to the race.
...your arguments were heard when cable tv came along. huge outcry by media, but we know how that turned out. to stifle technology is crazy. the merger will happen in one form or another. one of the two companies will go bk, so ultimately you will have one company.
Well alot of us LOVE our satellite radios. My stations are rarely off the talk radio stations. No one is making you pay for it if you don’t want it. You’d rather they go bankrupt so none of us would have the choice apparently.
A combined XM/Sirius would not be a monopoly. Sure, they’ll probably carve off some duplicative programing, but that’s about it.
If they increased price, I would be more than happy to take that money and give it to Apple for a few extra iTunes downloads.
Terrestrial does not want the competition from Satrad. Period. Especially since their competing platform “HD Radio” is a complete and total non-starter.
In any event, DOJ has already signed off on the new pricing plan, so no worries on that.
That’s a pretty authoritarian statement on a pro-freedom web site.
Poor, old LURCH...desperately trying to maintain an appearance of relevancy. Nobody listens to this A$$HOLE, anyway...he should just go home and gobble up his “57 Varieties”.
Every one of you misses the bigger point here.
The reason Democrats such as Kerry don’t want the merger is because they want both companies to go out of business.
Why? Fairness Doctrine.
The Democrats will put the Fairness Doctrine back in once they have the WH and Congress.
Of course, this will put a crimp in conservative radio. Those hosts will need a place to do their shows...satellite radio.
Do you understand now?
Good thought.
The XM/Sirius merger would be monopolistic exactly how? Once XM and Sirius merge, would you no longer be able to listen to any other form of audio content?
The very fact that the NAB protested this merger so vigorously proves that they compete with satellite radio. Since they do, how can a combined XM/Sirius be monopolistic? The market is audio, not satellite radio.
Sheesh.
If they are trying to stop the future, they ought to pay less attention to satellite radio. It's definitely not the future.
"Serious concerns" = loss of market share for the radio/communications corporations who donate to Kerry.
I wonder how much money Mr. Heinz is getting from the NABs...
It sounds like you’re suggesting that only one automobile manufacturer would be acceptable because horses are always available.
On the other hand, you are aware that a number of conservative talk shows and hosts will lose much if not all of their audience if XM and Sirius die, right?
Satellite Radio is also the only current broadcast-type audio that can be had 100% commercial free.
Until we get some sort of universal WiFi system up in cities, that is - then we can use internet radio stations.
Bad analogy. A horse isn’t a substitute for a car for a number of obvious reasons.
An iPod, on the other hand, is a substitue for a satrad.
Question - are you a satrad subscriber? If not, why do you care about this merger?
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