Posted on 02/22/2005 10:32:00 AM PST by LittleMoe
By SCOTT LAUCK
It’s the nature of technology these days to change from analog to digital and to move from the earth to the sky. So perhaps it should come as no surprise that satellite radio is becoming increasingly popular. Satellite radio has been around for years but has only recently begun to make a big dent in the market. In December, the United States’ two satellite radio companies, XM Radio and Sirius, reported record numbers of subscribers.
While mainstream FM radio continues to dominate, there are clearly a number of listeners who are trying something different.
Fred Dimmel, a student at Missouri Western State College, is among them. He first heard about satellite radio from an uncle who owned a car with the service factory-installed.
Mr. Dimmel says he forgot about satellite radio until he began looking for a space-efficient way to listen to music in his Ford Ranger.
“All I had in my truck was the tape player,” he says. “Rather than try to fit CDs into a small truck or finding a place to put a CD changer, the satellite deal was kind of the cheap, easy option to put in there and still get digital music and a pretty good selection, so I didn’t feel limited like with normal radio.”
Unlike normal FM or AM radio, which only broadcasts on a limited number of frequencies, satellite radio includes hundreds of channels, exposing listeners to a much wider variety of music, as well as talk radio, sports and other features.
Because users pay a subscription fee, most programs contain no commercials. In addition, the receivers can usually be plugged into a home stereo or computer, allowing for in-home use.
Like the majority of satellite radio listeners, Mr. Dimmel subscribes to XM Radio, the nation’s largest such provider. The Washington, D.C.-based company was founded 12 years ago, and as of December had 3.1 million subscribers.
XM’s competitor, New York, N.Y.-based Sirius, reported at the same time that it had surpassed its goal of 1 million subscribers. Company CEO Mel Karmazin called 2004 a “watershed year.” “We believe that this enthusiasm will continue, and we expect to double our subscribers during 2005,” he says.
Although younger and smaller than XM, Sirius got a boost this year when radio shock jock Howard Stern said he would begin broadcasting with the company in 2006.
Mr. Stern’s decision highlights another difference between satellite and conventional radio: looser regulations. While the U.S. Federal Communications Commission enforces decency rules on publicly broadcast material, subscription-based systems are left alone.
Both XM and Sirius have taken a number of other approaches to get their systems in people’s hands.
Among the most effective has been through deals with car manufacturers. These days, the systems come installed in a number of new vehicles.
While satellite radio offers a number of advantages, it has a few drawbacks as well. Unlike cell phones, service for satellite radio is available in far-flung locations. However, it is often blocked by tall buildings, parking garage roofs and other impediments. In larger cities, repeaters allow the signals to get through. However, Mr. Dimmel says he sometimes has trouble getting reception in downtown St. Joseph.
And occasionally, he said, he misses the ability to play his own CDs, noting that “you have more options but you can’t control what’s on there.”
Nonetheless, he’s found that loss hasn’t been much of a burden.
“It doesn’t happen as much as I thought it would,” he says.
I've got XM on my new Buick. Best option I ever added to a car.
Why did ya pick XM
I'm a big baseball fan and they just signed a big contract to broadcast all MLB games.
Well, if Roger Hedgecock or Larry Elder were on satelite at the same time as Rush .... I'd forget all about the self-serving loudmouth.
Laura Ingrahm too.
I've been seriously considering it. I drive around 1000 miles a week, but I'm not really into music that much, so I try to listen to news/talk radio. Unfortunatly, the only thing I can pick up reliably is ultra-liberal NPR...
It's included in the base rate. Instead of paying by the month I went whole-hog and paid for the year and got about a 10-15% discount.
I've got xm, best damn decision I ever made.
Went with xm because numbers talk, s**t walks.
Serius might just be a better provider, but until they get the numnbers up, the teeter totter.
Remember Sony beta v.s. Matsushita VHS?? Sony's beta was superior, but because of their marketing plan, VHS still lives and beta is in the dust bin with all the Radio Shack Model I pcs.
if you don't care for Rush ya might check out Dennis Prager..
and you can listen online. He comes on after Laura Ingraham.
http://www.krla870.com
Laura Ingrahm's show is played on Sirius.
I do think that the local affiliate deals like those Rush has may be a thing of the past, and he may be the last big personality to have deals of this type. I could be wrong, but I see the Stern-type satellite deals as much more consumer friendly, as you don't have to push buttons as you drive from one region to the next to retain your favorite show.
I pay quarterly. Get a bill for about 28.50 for three months.
CHEEEPPP!!!
I do hope that the Stern thing flys with Serius. Competition in this market would be a good thing.
If Serius can get this off the ground, xm is going to have to play catch up.
It'll be interesting.
My neighbor workes in radio for 55 years. She remembers when FM was nothing and then took over, before talk radio emerged as a major player. She has stock in XM and put one in her car. She says satellite will wipe out am and fm. I see it as a must for many areas, but if you're near a big city why bother?
I've got Sirius (don't pay for it, it came with my car) and the sound quality is horrible. It's fine for cable news channels and talk radio, but the music is definitely less enjoyable with all of the quantization/compression distortion.
Top 10 reasons I don't have satellite radio:
1)Cost
2)Reception is bad in downtown areas or areas shielded by buildings, trees, tunnels, etc.
3)Got thousands of songs on my iPod
4)Listen to books on my iPod
5)Talk "RADIO"
6)How much time does one really actually listen to the radio beyond the ocassional drive time?
7)Don't need yet one more $15 per month subscription fee (think: satellite tv, cell phone, broadband, telephone, etc.)
8)Too much content clutter already in my life.
9) A thousand stations and nothing worth listening to.
10) Did I mention the $15 monthly cost for bleeding-edge radio?
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