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| Satellite Radio: Tune In or Turn Off? |
Posted by
timothy
on Wednesday December 12, @12:15PM
from the pay-your-monthly-fee-please dept. Steve MacLaughlin writes: "After nearly a decade of buildup and anticipation satellite radio has finally hit the airwaves. By now you’ve probably seen a commercial or read an article about the digital satellite radio service. But what is behind all the hype? And does satellite radio have a viable future? To answer those questions Saltire decided to take an in-depth look at the new service’s inner-workings, its potential, and its possible future." Read on for more of Steve's look at the current options and future possibilities for satellite radio service.
Satellite radio has been a technology in the making for many years now. In 1992, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) assigned part of the S-band (2.3 GHz) spectrum for nationwide broadcasting of a satellite-based Digital Audio Radio Service (DARS). In 1997, the FCC granted American Mobile Radio (now XM Satellite Radio) and CD Radio (now Sirius Satellite Radio) broadcast rights over that band. After several years of tinkering, courting investors and partners, and lining up their content these two companies are poised to finally make satellite radio a reality.
The Players
XM Satellite Radio (NASDQ: XMSR) and Sirius Satellite Radio (NASDQ: SIRI) paid an estimated $80 million each for their exclusive distribution rights to satellite radio. With numerous industry partners and investors these two companies are hoping to become the next giants of the media world.
Washington, D.C. based XM Radio launched nationwide service on November 12, 2001, after two months of regional service. XM Radio currently offers 100 channels (71 music and 29 news, sports, talk, and children’s programming). XM Radio has exclusive content relationships with C/NET, NASCAR, and others. XM Radio’s most notable auto industry partner is General Motors. Cadillac now offers XM Radio standard on all new 2002 Sevilles and Devilles. XM Radio’s service is available for a monthly subscription fee of $9.99.
New York City based Sirius Radio plans to launch their service in Denver, Houston, and Phoenix on February 14, 2002. A Sirius Radio spokesperson told Saltire that their service will be available nationwide by the third-quarter of 2002. Sirius Radio also offers 100 channels (60 commercial-free music and 40 news, sports, talk, and entertainment programming). Sirius Radio has exclusive content relationships with NPR, Hispanic Radio Network, and National Lampoon. Sirius Radio also has exclusive partnerships with DaimlerChrysler, Ford, and BMW. Sirius Radio's service is available for a monthly subscription fee of $12.95.
Although XM Radio and Sirius Radio have their distinct differences there are however some things that that they both share in common. Both services offer similar music channel genres. The big difference being that all of Sirius Radio’s music channels are commercial-free as opposed to only about 30 such channels on XM Radio. Both services also share several news and entertainment providers like Bloomberg, CNBC, CNN, ESPN, and the Weather Channel.
XM Radio and Sirius Radio have also partnered with many of the same manufacturing partners including Alpine, Clarion, Delphi Delco, Panasonic, Pioneer, Sony, and Visteon. One very exciting product is Sony’s "Plug and Play" DRN-XM01 model that works in both your car and home stereo system through the use of a $150 adapter kit. The two companies have also teamed up with similar retailers to help distribute satellite radio receivers, antennas, and other devices. These retailers include Best Buy, Circuit City, Crutchfield, Good Guys, and Tweeter.
Just The Facts
According to the Radio Advertising Bureau, 75% of all Americans age 12 and up listen to radio daily, and 95% listen every week. But their choices are almost always very limited. Consider the fact that more than 22 million listeners receive fewer than five FM stations, and the communications industry firm Veronis, Suhler & Associates noted that 50% of all existing radio stations only use one of three programming formats (Adult Contemporary, Country, and News/Talk/Sports).
In many cases, huge segments of the music industry get little or no coverage by mainstream radio. One study indicated that up to 21% of annual music sales come from these totally ignored formats. This is especially true of ethnic music formats like African, Asian, Caribbean, or Hispanic. Combine this with the fact that more than 105 million listeners live outside the 50 largest radio markets and you quickly realize satellite radio’s potential appeal.
Too Much Information
XM Radio uses two Boeing HS-702 satellites that are positioned over the East and West Coasts of the United States. The satellites, aptly named "Rock" and "Roll", maintain a geostationary orbit at 22,000 miles above the earth. XM Radio has a third back-up satellite on the ground should something go wrong in orbit.
Sirius Radio uses three Space Systems/Loral 1300 satellites in a high altitude elliptical orbit. Sirius Radio contends that this ensures that each satellite will spend about 16 hours a day over the U.S., and that at least one satellite is over the country at all times. Sirius Radio also has a back-up satellite standing by just in case of problems.
Both companies transmit their signal on the S-band, at 12.5 MHz to radio receivers on the ground. Sirius Radio will use the in the 2320.0 to 2332.5 MHz frequency band. XM Radio already uses the 2332.5 to 2345.0 MHz frequency band. They will also use repeaters in urban areas where buildings and other obstructions may interfere with signal reception.
One On One
Saltire interviewed Chance Patterson, XM Radio's Vice President of Corporate Affairs, to get his take on satellite radio.
Saltire - What are some of the key differences between XM Radio and Sirius Radio?
CP - The biggest difference is that we have a fully developed and deployed system. We have a proven product that’s great, and we developed the system with a retail focus, not just limited to the car. But we’re not just an audio service. We’ve recruited the best people in the industry. These people really make our content come alive.
Saltire - What will it take for XM Radio to succeed financially?
CP - We figure that we need 4.5 million subscribers to be profitable. There are more than 200 million registered vehicles in the United States. So we need less than 2.5% of all cars to reach that figure. And this doesn’t take into account people who only use it in the home. We think the demand is definitely there.
Saltire - How important is the auto industry to XM Radio’s success?
CP - They are a part of it for sure. We have a full OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) system. We have partnered with GM, and they are also an investor. Right now Cadillac models already have the system. Over the next year more than 20 GM models will have factory-installed units.
Saltire - What does satellite radio mean for listeners?
CP - People are spending more time in their cars and they want to be informed, and they want to enjoy that time a little more. XM can do that. If you’re listening to the reggae channel you should feel like you’re in Jamaica. It’s really point-of-view radio.
Saltire - What does satellite radio mean for traditional radio?
CP - XM doesn’t disenfranchise AM/FM. Terrestrial radio will be forced to get better. Talk to the audience like they’re older than 12 year olds. Talk to me about the music. Talk to me about the world when [the song] was written. That’s what listeners really want.
Saltire - But will people really pay for satellite radio?
CP - People said they’d never pay for cable television because TV was something they already got for free. Look at how that turned out. We’re going to do the same thing for radio. The difference is that we already have all of the infrastructure. The one-millionth subscriber doesn’t cost more than the first one. We’ll offer better quality, less commercials, and more choice. We believe people will pay for their passions.
Word On The Street
Saltire solicited the unfettered opinions of individuals in the technology, radio, and automotive industry.
What do you think satellite radio means for advertisers?
"I think it can potentially be very good for advertisers. Specifically, by dividing the content available into so many categories, advertisers can probably make better assumptions about demographics. For example, XM Radio offers a dedicated NASCAR channel, dedicated BlueGrass channel, etc. The targeting is more granular than conventional radio where most stations do a little of everything, music, news, weather, traffic, etc. This should translate to more effective advertising potential for advertisers. That said, some of us are and will be willing to pay for commercial free options - I sure am." - Jason Foodman, technologist and Vice President of Business Development, Aladdin Systems
Why do you think satellite radio has the potential to be a big success?
"Abetted by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that relaxed ownership restrictions and made possible the creation of media behemoths, conventional radio programmers unwittingly sabotaged their own stations through pernicious cost-saving programming trends such as corporate-level programming, format duplication and computer automation. The result: bland, boring, sound-alike radio stations from town to town, up and down the dial all across America, which drive away listeners in droves. That's good for satellite radio services like XM and, soon, Sirius, since listeners may eventually find their way to satellite radio." - Michael Saffran, radio industry veteran and Senior News Specialist, Rochester Institute of Technology
What does the auto industry really think about satellite radio?
"Everybody in the automotive/telematics value chain is excited about it. Well, maybe not everybody, but I've just been doing some interviews on a satellite based telematics project, and everybody I've talked to at OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, cellular carriers, really likes the idea of satellite radio. I get the feeling they want this to work, if only because it lets them get a foot in the car door with subscription-based services." - Thomas R. Elliott, Vice President of North American Consulting, Strategy Analytics, Inc.
The Bottom Line
Both XM Radio and Sirius Radio agree that the market is big enough for two players. But as both services ramp up they need to find a way to stay in business. XM Radio recently reported a third-quarter '01 net loss of $70.8 million. Sirius Radio reported a net loss of $57 million for the same time period. XM Radio just announced financing to operate its business into the fourth-quarter of 2002. Sirius Radio has also publicly announced that they have enough cash to last until the fourth-quarter of 2002.
To succeed both companies will need the support of the auto industry, and quickly. Getting satellite radios installed as standard equipment will help to build their subscriber base. The current $300 to $400 conversion cost might be a bit too steep for most consumers. Also, current receivers only support a single format (XM or Sirius). Future AM/FM/XM/SR models should also help boost more widespread usage.
Finally, there is enough content overlap to keep subscribers to either service happy. Perhaps the biggest decision is whether or not you want ads with your music. Sirius Radio’s commercial-free music service can be yours for just $3 more each month than what XM Radio charges. The immense variety of music and other content should be a big hit if consumers can just find an easy way to get their hands on the technology. And reports of its CD-quality audio can only help to increase satellite radio's popularity. I'm still waiting to hear it for myself. Stay tuned.
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Who cares? (Score:1, Insightful)
by vought (vought@remove.mac.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:19PM (#2693815)
(User #160908 Info | http://www.alternativelight.com)
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With in-car MP3, XM and Sirius are headed for the same landfill that Iridium and Ricochet are in, namely, great technology that solves no problems.
What a waste!
Now if someone could just get my trash bin to the street on Wednesday mornings without my involvement...that would be weinning technology.
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| - Re:Who cares? by mancuskc (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:24PM
Re:Who cares? (Score:4, Interesting)
by squiggleslash on Wednesday December 12, @12:51PM (#2694075)
(User #241428 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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Britain used to have a radio licence - until the late sixties - which ultimately was a subscription to BBC radio (there were no other radio operators.) So people in Britain did, indeed, pay for radio directly rather than indirectly through higher priced groceries, etc.
Note too that until the advent of cable TV, "the whole world" (except Britain) had "NEVER paid for TV". Cable changed that.
Given a choice between indirectly and directly funded radio I can't say I know whether enough consumers would choose the latter, especially if it requires special equipment. But given time, and given radios that have the additional functionality built in, that may be a matter of time.
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| - Re:Who cares? by FatRatBastard (Score:3) Wednesday December 12, @01:03PM
- Re:Who cares? by squiggleslash (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:12PM
- Re:Who cares? by FatRatBastard (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:23PM
- Re:Who cares? by squiggleslash (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:15PM
- Re:Who cares? by Aztech (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:32PM
Re:Who cares? (Score:4, Interesting)
by FatRatBastard (acentofanti.yahoo@com) on Wednesday December 12, @02:49PM (#2694846)
(User #7583 Info | http://www.fatratbastard.com/)
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The BBC is not a government entity
You're right, I stand corrected.. but...
the government's sole involvement at all is it had the right to appoint members of a group of governors, who are chosen apolitically. The BBC's independence is considered important.
And I argue that the Beeb is closer to the Gov't than most independent companies. They held the exclusive rights to broadcasting in England until about 40 years ago. On paper it may be independent, but for the sake of what we're taking about its a lot closer to its gov't than the likes of XM Radio.
This is about the British Radio licence, not about the TV licence.
True, but its still analogous to the system for radio 40 years ago, except now they never got rid of the TV license when they allowed independent TV into the market. The British pay the TV license for the same reasons they paid for Radio: as you said IF THEY DIDN'T WANT TO PAY IT, they didn't have to, but they wouldn't be allowed to receive radio either. They lose the right to own a radio outright. You may technically have a choice, but for all intents and purposes unless you want to live in a cave you pay. It is similar today. You don't pay the license, you can't own a TV, regardless of whether you watch BBC or not.
And the radio licence was abolished once non-BBC radio channels became available in the UK.
In which lies the problem. The BBC had a monopoly on radio broadcast. You either pay and listen to any radio (even if you wanted to listen to foreign stations from across the channel) or you didn't pay and listened to nothing. Yup, I was wrong calling it a tax (I always thought it was. The damn bill showed up and the gov't would throw you in the clink if you didn't pay) but for all intents and purposes it was. Own a radio, pay the licensing fee. Sure, you're paying for the BBC's content, but by gov't mandate it was the only content you could receive from British soil. Not exactly the most free of markets.
Which was my point. People in the UK didn't pay for a radio license for the same reasons that people are going to pay for XM radio here. There, the only choice was either pay the license or lose the right to hear ANY radio (which was the prominent means of mass communications of the time).
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| - Re:Who cares? by FatRatBastard (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:53PM
- 1 reply
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- Re:Who cares? by Aztech (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:05PM
- Re:Who cares? by FatRatBastard (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:18PM
- Re:Who cares? by Aztech (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @03:02PM
- Re:Who cares? by drsquare (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @05:13PM
- Re:Who cares? by drsquare (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @05:09PM
- 1 reply
beneath your current threshold.
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- Re:Who cares? by Cy Guy (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:26PM
- Re:Who cares? by Anonymous Coward (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:29PM
- 1 reply
beneath your current threshold.
- Re:Who cares? by copec (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:29PM
- Re:Who cares? by McD!ck (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:33PM
- Re:Who cares? by Squareball (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:47PM
- Re:Who cares? by Guillaume Ross (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:45PM
- Re:Who cares? by Squareball (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @05:17PM
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Re:Who cares? (Score:5, Insightful)
by amccall on Wednesday December 12, @12:35PM (#2693943)
(User #24406 Info | http://andrew.nrrds.com/)
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Truck Drivers, Audiophiles, "Gadget People", people who like to drive cross country(or need to).
I spend roughly 1 and a half hours in the car each day. Listening to a single set of mp3s, even a large one, can get tedious.
Then there is talk radio, which I imagine is going to be a large application of this thing. 24 hour Rush Limbaugh Marathons(...what joy...), still I imagined listened too. More selection, less trouble dealing with media/mp3's. Station not playing what you like, pick another. Then there is news, traffic reports(I don't know about localization, but I imagine it's possible), weather, and such - which just can't be taken with you.
Anyway, just because you don't see applications, doesn't mean that noone is going to buy it. Remember, people still listen to radio, not just CD's.
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| - Reason to care: Your music is lame by Mdog (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:39PM
- Me too, by Bake (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:38PM
- I Care! by ackthpt (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:41PM
- Re:I Care! by AB3A (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:37PM
- Re:Who cares? by tomzyk (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:52PM
- Re:Who cares? by zulux (Score:3) Wednesday December 12, @12:55PM
- Re:Who cares? by glitch! (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:39PM
- Re:Who cares? by spamkabuki (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:56PM
- Re:Who cares? by mojotooth (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:03PM
- Re:Who cares? by CaseyB (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:38PM
- That's a lot of work! by Gorimek (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:05PM
- Re:Who cares? by Triv (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:09PM
- Re:Who cares? by Jeriko1 (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:10PM
- Re:Who cares? by FunkyRat (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @10:41PM
- Re:Who cares? by mentin (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:19PM
- Re:Who cares? by Hee Hee Hee (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:24PM
- I might care by gmack (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:51PM
- Re:Who cares? by homebru (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:55PM
- Re:Who cares? by rhaig (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:11PM
- wrong by pyite69 (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:13PM
- Re:Who cares? by 4mn0t1337 (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:20PM
- Re:Who cares? by amuro98 (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:32PM
- Re:Who cares? by jeavis (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:10PM
- Re:Who cares? by Zenjive (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @05:17PM
- 3 replies
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sattelite radio (Score:2, Interesting)
by dmallery on Wednesday December 12, @12:19PM (#2693816)
(User #150862 Info)
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i live in a very remote area of western new mexico. the only local radio is in navajo. you can get one or two bubble gum stations from gallup. before primestar, i had to listen to the bbc on s/w for news.
i'm ready.
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Sat. Radio (Score:1)
by Kronik Gamer on Wednesday December 12, @12:20PM (#2693824)
(User #518652 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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I believe that if these companies can get enough support from he customer market, that both will be viable standards in the future. I like the idea of being able to move around the country while not having to worry about switching between channels. This will probably be a major selling point for sat. radio, and barring any major outages, should keep the customer happy.
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I'm in... (Score:2, Interesting)
by Byteme (james@nospam-pronoblem.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:21PM (#2693827)
(User #6617 Info | http://www.pronoblem.com)
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Only if I can get every college radio station from accross the country that I desire on my presets. Until then I'll stick to CDs and my MP3 player.
Commercial radio sucks big time.
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| - Re:I'm in... by micromoog (Score:3) Wednesday December 12, @12:27PM
- Re:I'm in... by ddstreet (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:05PM
- OK by Byteme (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:36PM
- Re:OK by micromoog (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @03:48PM
- Re:OK by Byteme (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @04:31PM
- 1 reply
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- Yeah but... by gpinzone (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @04:46PM
- 1 reply
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Less interesting that it used to be (Score:5, Interesting)
by crow on Wednesday December 12, @12:21PM (#2693829)
(User #16139 Info | http://www.crowcastle.net/preston/)
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Five years ago, this would have been the coolest thing in the world. Imagine being able to commute in the morning an listen to music instead of a pair of DJs chatting. Sure, you could pop in a tape or CD, but that can be a pain.
Now, it's not quite so interesting. The early adopters have been, at least in part, co-opted by car MP3 players. If I had a long commute, you can bet that's the direction I would invest my car audio dollars.
Of course, there is still a significant market for them, but it's just a little harder to get people excited about it than it would have been a few years ago.
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| - Audio books & Howard stern on the road... by disc-chord (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:37PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by FatRatBastard (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:39PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by Mr_Matt (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:41PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by dkresge (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:50PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by rw2 (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:52PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by Pointy_Hair (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:59PM
- I disagree by pyite69 (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:17PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by SquadBoy (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @03:03PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by mosch (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @03:13PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by MalletShaft (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:30PM
- Re:Less interesting that it used to be by evilned (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @04:58PM
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Coverage (Score:2, Insightful)
by mini me on Wednesday December 12, @12:22PM (#2693838)
(User #132455 Info)
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In many cases, huge segments of the music industry get little or no coverage by mainstream radio.
Lucky them!
Seriously, if this technology is just an overglorified radio, what is the benifit? If they provide radio stations with content the people want to hear (like non-mainstream music in all genres) then you might have a winner.
Of course if this frequency is ideal for wireless satellite broadband internet access then get the radio off it immediately! You can stream the radio over the net if you have to.
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| - Re:Coverage by geekoid (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:45PM
- Re:Coverage by the_2nd_coming (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:08PM
- Re:Coverage by zeda (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:04PM
- Broadband Internet by sterno (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:08PM
- Re:Coverage by Jus'n (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:33PM
- Re:Coverage by whoisjoe (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:04PM
- Re:Coverage by pyite69 (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:19PM
- Re:Coverage by LS (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @03:47PM
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XM radio (Score:5, Informative)
by wiredog on Wednesday December 12, @12:23PM (#2693841)
(User #43288 Info | Last Journal: Monday October 01, @06:53PM)
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There's been lots of coverage of their system in the Washington Post [washingtonpost.com]. Look for stories by (former) radio reporter Frank Ahrens. He likes XM
If you liked WHFS back in the day, one of their former dj's now works for XM.
XM handles signal fade in cities by putting repeaters up all over the place.
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| - Re:XM radio by S. Allen (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:42PM
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- Re:XM radio by jtseng (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:16PM
- Re:XM radio by Brian Feldman (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @04:18PM
- Re:XM radio by robp (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @04:49PM
- 1 reply
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License? (Score:1)
by anthony_dipierro (a1a20c176@inbox.org) on Wednesday December 12, @12:24PM (#2693849)
(User #543308 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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Do the satellite companies need to obtain a negotiated license to "broadcast" these songs over this medium? I was under the impression that once you charged a subscription fee, ASCAP licenses were no longer valid.
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60 channels of music... (Score:3, Funny)
by wangi (<wangi> <at> <earthling.net>) on Wednesday December 12, @12:24PM (#2693851)
(User #16741 Info)
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Of the same music! Damn, America has two types of music - Country and Western!
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Outside of radio markets (Score:5, Interesting)
by ManualCrank Angst on Wednesday December 12, @12:24PM (#2693853)
(User #541890 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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You in the big cities and even you in the more heavily populated rural areas may not realize what this means. But ask anyone who has driven across Montana, Wyoming, and one or both of the Dakotas: There are literally miles and miles where you cannot get any radio at all. I'm not saying "nothing but talk" or "nothing but Hat Act music". I'm saying literally NOTHING.
For this reason, I'm guessing that satellite radio receivers would be a big hit in Ryder/UHaul trucks. It would also keep them from having to reprogram the radio settings at every location.
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Question about reception (Score:2)
by astrashe (alex@strasheim.org) on Wednesday December 12, @12:25PM (#2693857)
(User #7452 Info)
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I live in a high rise. My windows are on the North, and in every other direction, including straight up, there's a lot of steel.
Would I be able to receive XM signals? I can't get satellite TV, obviously.
I love radio, and would buy XM in an instant if I knew it would work. But I haven't seen very much information on reception. Most of their marketing and FAQs seem to be aimed at people in cars and trucks. I like to drive as much as the next guy (more, probably), but I'm just not on the road that often.
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San Diego Blues (Score:1)
by McD!ck on Wednesday December 12, @12:26PM (#2693871)
(User #444861 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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San Diego is so devoid of radio competition that we have 1 independent radio station worth listening to. The rest of our stations are Clear Channel or clarity or something corperate radio. Sure we have some PBS action and all that stuff, but no real choices when it comes to blues, rock, techno/electronica/trance/goa, alternative, etc. I am going to get XM radio installed if only for the divirsity of music that we SHOULD have already! Why can't I just like what everyone else likes?
Maybe that is why I am here. . . ;)
Does anybody have any realworld experiance with XM?
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digital radio? (Score:2, Interesting)
by Graff on Wednesday December 12, @12:27PM (#2693872)
(User #532189 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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I would love this if they were broadcasting in digital radio. It would be cool to be able to have song titles listed, have the quality of digital, be able to search for a particular type of music or song being played, etc. If it is just analog then I'm not so sure if it will take off.
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| - It's digital by wiredog (Score:3) Wednesday December 12, @12:39PM
- Re:digital radio? by RocketScientist (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:08PM
- 1 reply
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Opening the door to car-based subscriptions? (Score:2, Interesting)
by quistas (robomilhous@email.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:27PM (#2693876)
(User #137309 Info)
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"I get the feeling they want this to work, if only because it lets them get a foot in the car door with subscription-based services."
So car manufacturers want to adopt practices of other industries? I find it hard to believe that there's a great consumer need out there for car-delievered subscription services, since the vast majority of car owners spend such a limited (if regular) time in their cars that it doesn't offer the value DirecTV/cable/DSL/etc offer.
Further, the car's considered a big, expensive appliance, like a washing machine -- customers aren't going to spend extra monthly over the life of the car for something like leather seats. I think the potential market the car makers are trying to tap into is extremely limited, but look towards their attempts with fear.
-- q
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I will NOT pay for XM. (Score:5, Interesting)
by reaper20 on Wednesday December 12, @12:27PM (#2693877)
(User #23396 Info | http://www.whiprush.org)
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I will not pay $10 a month for the 'right' to listen to more commercials. I pay $40 a month for internet, and get spammed from them. I pay $80 a month for Directv, and get more "special offer" channels instead of more movies in DD5.1 GM's OnStar deal, more cost the car, and when your 'free trial' runs out, there's another monthly fee, otherwise, you paid for some electronic gizmo in your new GM car that won't work in 5 years, and another route for more spam, crammed down our throats, on systems that WE are paying for.
And don't give me that garbage about "your monthly fee only covers infrastructure costs, someone needs to pay for content." I don't buy that for a second, if I pay for a service, don't cram ads down to consumers. That's why I am using a pay service to begin with.
This doesn't offer me anything that I don't get with free FM (which is financed by commercials, fair tradeoff). CD quality? Big deal, I can throw an mp3 player in my car for cheap these days.
They will fail and blame "poor market conditions" or have some other excuse for not making money. Funny how noone says "We didn't use common sense" as an excuse.
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| - Economic Viability by krez (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:44PM
Re:I will NOT pay for XM. (Score:5, Interesting)
by austad on Wednesday December 12, @12:57PM (#2694112)
(User #22163 Info)
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I agree completely. XM has the advantage of being out first, especially right before christmas. But there is no friggin' way in hell I'm going to *PAY* $10 a month for more commercials. I will happily pay $12.95 a month though to Sirius for commercial free music.
An mp3 player in the car would be nice, but it requires love and attention for adding new music, creating playlists, etc. It's nice to just be able to turn on the radio and hear music. Plus, you get exposed to new music on the radio, with an mp3 player, you are limited to what's in your current library.
I've complained many times to XM about their commercials, and several of my friends have also. It appears that they have made a few channels commercial free now because of all of the complaints, but there are still commercials, and there is no way I'm going to pay for that.
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| - Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by KaiserSoze (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:25PM
- Yeah by wiredog (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:43PM
- Re:Yeah by ZxCv (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @05:16PM
- Re:Yeah by wiredog (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @07:38PM
- Re:Yeah by ryanwright (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @07:50PM
- Re:Yeah by joekool (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @09:58PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by ZxCv (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @05:29PM
- You are the exception by ackthpt (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:01PM
- Re:You are the exception by WinDoze (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:41PM
- Re:You are the exception by gmhowell (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:09PM
- Re:You are the exception by zeda (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:14PM
Re:You are the exception (Score:5, Insightful)
by Black Perl on Wednesday December 12, @02:35PM (#2694764)
(User #12686 Info)
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Cable TV generates new unique content.
Radio just plays music that is available elsewhere.
Yes, but:
- I like to hear new music that I haven't been exposed to before.
- NONE of the 4-5 genres of music I like to listen to is broadcast on the radio where I live.
This is reason enough for me to get it, particularly with the receiver that can move from car to home. I'm sure there are many others in the same situation.
If there were more independent radio stations and less corporate crap, this wouldn't be necessary.
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- You won't pay for radio but you pay $80 for TV?!? by GizmoToy (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:04PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by waitdyahoo.com (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:11PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by karb (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:39PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by Suppafly (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @01:49PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by RocketScientist (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @02:01PM
- dumbass, read the article by pyite69 (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:24PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by sneakcjj (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:23PM
- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by Animixer (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @06:10PM
- Agreed, Ads are getting out of hand by MO! (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @06:36PM
- 1 reply
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- Re:I will NOT pay for XM. by WinDoze (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @01:51PM
- 5 replies
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Let's finish the job (Score:5, Flamebait)
by Zen Mastuh on Wednesday December 12, @12:28PM (#2693883)
(User #456254 Info)
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Can we finally rid the world of the middleman now? We have:
- A limitless supply of artists
- A limitless supply of music fans
- Ubiquitous medium (satellite radio)
- Music sharing services (Morpheus, etc...) and payment services (PayPal, etc...) that can be improved to be secure and can be coordinated to allow music fans to pay a fair price (read: far less than $17 per CD) directly to the artists.
- A corrupt, outdated system in which the artist gets screwed at the time the contract is signed, the fan gets screwed at the checkout counter, and the industry's trade association lobbies for (and receives) absurd laws with draconian penalties that ensure a limitless profit stream for its minions
Someone please stop the RIAA before they ask their cronies (the gummint) to pass laws making it illegal to hum tunes to ourselves?
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weather permitting... (Score:1)
by jodonn on Wednesday December 12, @12:28PM (#2693884)
(User #516010 Info)
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So what happens when the sky's overcast? Will the signal get lost like satellite TV? With terrestrial radio the signal only breaks when I drive under a mountain.
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It's not the music that will sell this. (Score:2, Insightful)
by markx16 on Wednesday December 12, @12:28PM (#2693885)
(User #214251 Info)
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I see the greatest appeal in satellite radio in talk radio/news/sports, live content that you wouldn't be able to get(or at least reliably or from a consistent source) if you're on the road.
Plus, like with satellite TV, it could help you get shows from other parts of the country you'd otherwise be unable to get.
Plus, not everyone has the time or inclination to upload their music collections to mp3.
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truckers (Score:2)
by geekoid (notities@yahoo.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:28PM (#2693887)
(User #135745 Info | http://slashdot.org/ | Last Journal: Thursday February 21, @04:37PM)
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They compare themselfd to pay tv.
I think most people enjoy watching tv more then litening to the radio. How many people want to get together and listen to the big game? ~0.
Most people are in there cars for less then 2 hours a day, almost all of them neve leave there radio area. Contray to what he says, Most dense population have a wide variety of radio programming.
The only potential market I see is truckers.
I do have an idea that would make this successful, I just don't know if it would be acceptable under current regulations.
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Cruising for local radio (Score:2, Interesting)
by Tetsujin28 (slashdot@tetsujinNOSPAM.org) on Wednesday December 12, @12:28PM (#2693889)
(User #156148 Info | http://www.tetsujin.org/)
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For me, one of the joys of long car trips -- like DC to Boston, or DC to Denver -- is scanning for interesting local radio. Especially weird local talk radio. Same sattelite radio stations, coast to coast? Boring! No sattelite radio for me!
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The $30 question is (Score:4, Interesting)
by baptiste ([moc.skrowtenbsm] [ta] [hsals]) on Wednesday December 12, @12:29PM (#2693894)
(User #256004 Info | http://www.keepersoflists.org/ | Last Journal: Tuesday September 11, @03:43PM)
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I refuse to pay for extra receivers. THink about it. 2 receivers for your two cars (if you're married or very rich :) ) plus at least one receiver on teh Home AV system. Will it still be $10/month? If so I'd sign up - seems worth it. Or will I get charged another $3-$5 for each additional receiver? I've been a DISH subscriber for years and it just irks me to have to pay $5/month for each extra receiver for additional rooms/TVs. It makes me feel like I'm getting less value.
Nope - from XM's customer agreement:
b) Multiple XM Radios.
If you add additional XM Radios to your account, you may purchase a separate subscription for each one (see Section 5).
That's $30 a month - no way in the world am I paying that - sorry.
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How long before ads? (Score:1)
by conan_albrecht (conan_albrecht AT yahoo DOT com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:29PM (#2693895)
(User #446296 Info)
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Cable TV had this approach at first: premium TV with no ads. While some stations had ads, most were commercial free. Seems like deja vu here.
How long before satellite radio is no different from cable TV? Sure, it's available everywhere, but the presence of ads every 1/2 hour keep me on NPR.
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FCC rules & regulations (Score:4, Interesting)
by Isaac-Lew (illewis@spam.yahoo.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:30PM (#2693904)
(User #623 Info)
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Do the same FCC decency rules & regulations apply for satellite transmissions as they do for AM/FM? It would be sweet to listen to uncensored talk radio (imagine what Opie & Anthony [opieandanthony.com] could do on the air....). I think that would be the killer app for satellite radio.
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| - Re:FCC rules & regulations by anthony_dipierro (Score:2) Wednesday December 12, @12:38PM
- Re:FCC rules & regulations by S. Allen (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @12:45PM
- Re:FCC rules & regulations by siegesama (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @02:30PM
- Re:FCC rules & regulations by psicE (Score:1) Wednesday December 12, @03:00PM
Re:FCC rules & regulations (Score:4, Interesting)
by stripes on Wednesday December 12, @04:30PM (#2695465)
(User #3681 Info | http://www.eng.us.uu.net/staff/stripes/ | Last Journal: Friday January 11, @09:54AM)
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Notice how the FCC decency rules apply to standard cable, but not HBO... I bet that within 5 years they'll apply to HBO too.
I think "standard" cable chooses to be conservative in what they air. It pisses me off, I have written to CourTV to tell them I don't watch NYPD Blue reruns that they air because they choose to bleep out dialog (and "airbrush" some body parts) the network TV has already aired!
At any rate the networks are getting more bold, not less. I also don't see HBO caving many of their most popular shows (Sopranos, Sex in the City) have nudity in pretty much each episode.
As for correcting the problem at the source, I would be happy to drop the whole lame censoring scheme we use, but many people still support it. In fact I recall writing my congress critter that I was in full support of the "V chip" crap if and only if it allowed any channel to broadcast as much sex and violence as they though was proper so long as it was labeled. I mean, if a parent doesn't want a child seeing that sort of thing, the V chip would stop it, right? If not, what good is it?
I would assume nothing stops XM from broadcasting whichever version of the music they like, the question is which version do they think makes more money? (personally I like some of the "cut" version better, not because the words offend me, but some of the digital scratch out effects that Rage used were pretty cool sounding, better then "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me!", but for the most part the uncut versions are better)
P.S. My Mac's spell check (OSX -- it's unix for the one button crowd!) doesn't have "fuck", one of the suggestions was "fsck"...
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XM (Score:1)
by steveo777 on Wednesday December 12, @12:30PM (#2693907)
(User #183629 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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Most car stereos have the ability to expand into XM Satellite recievers, as per the article, (including mine). The reciever costs more than the Stereo did, but I know that there are some great satellite radio stations out there (come on, you know you want to listen to Reggae).
Does anybody have experiance with these? How well do they work? How much does it cost per month (if it does). The main thing I see is that the stations should never fade out.
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These are easy to hack (Score:4, Interesting)
by WaIter Bell on Wednesday December 12, @12:31PM (#2693918)
(User #542911 Info)
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One of my buddies bought two XM radios last week and has been very happy
with them. In fact, he cracked them open and found that he could "clone"
his subscription onto the second radio by copying a serial
EEPROM chip. So now he is offering it as a service: he will clone an XM
radio onto another one for $50 and he is making a tidy little profit off of
friends and neighbors by cloning his own subscription, so that they get the
service for free.
In retrospect, XM should have really considered a smartcard system like
that of [microchip.com]DirecTV [directv.com]. Those are crackable
but they are a lot more difficult. Putting the authenticator on a damn
EEPROM chip was just a stupid move, and it is certain to result in
large-scale piracy.
~wally
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NPR without pledge drives (Score:1)
by FocaJonathan (jonathan.focalex@com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:33PM (#2693923)
(User #163913 Info | http://www.focalex.com/)
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- Sirius Radio has an exclusive relationship with NPR
- Sirius Radio?s commercial-free music service can be yours for just $3 more each month than what XM Radio charges.
How about NPR with out pledge drives. WBUR in Boston already offers a "Sustainer" program where they bill your credit card monthly. If you join you should get to hear NPR without pledge drives, now that would be technology solving a problem!
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Its the content, stupid.... (Score:3, Insightful)
by KoshClassic on Wednesday December 12, @12:34PM (#2693929)
(User #325934 Info)
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The bottom line with the success of these services will be a) Is the content actually good, where they'll play a song even if it isn't on a major label or performed by Brittney Spears, or am I going to have to listen to the same 75 songs programmed by mindless corporate drones over and over like I have to do on FM today? b) If they actually get part 'a' right, will they last long enough financially for word of mouth to help them achieve critical mass?
On a technical note, does anyone know the capacity of these systems in terms of the number of seperate channels they can offer?
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Got XM. Love it. (Score:2, Interesting)
by RocketScientist on Wednesday December 12, @12:35PM (#2693942)
(User #15198 Info)
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I have an hour commute every day. Combined with the occasional roadtrip, and I like having XM. When you add in the total suckiness of radio here in Kansas City, where we have one "All Pink Floyd, All The Time" station, one "Classic Rock" station and a whole crapload of Britney stations, some "Easy Listening" stations. No alternative. Not even any modern rock. They all suck.
I've got the pioneer equipment. It works well, it doesn't cut out, it sounds great. There are lots of stations with lots of different kinds of music.
I got it installed right before an 18 hour road trip. There's nothing like having music piped in for 9 hours at a stretch with no commercials and not having to change stations because "Another Brick in the Wall" came on AGAIN.
(Pink Floyd put out 20+ albums, why do radio stations insist on playing The Wall over and over and over again?)
The installation is painless, very similar to installing a remote CD Changer in your car.
Things I wish they had: Some kind of smart-card-ish way to bring a receiver into my house that doesn't cost as much as Sony's solution.
I'm very happy with the system right now.
-rs
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The fate of these birds.... (Score:1)
by snatchitup on Wednesday December 12, @12:36PM (#2693950)
(User #466222 Info | http://www.babe-test.com/)
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Will be similar to Motient's (formerly American Mobile Satellite) birds. XM Radio's beginnings actually spawn from AMSC. Some pretty top notch telecom guys in this area went to AMSC, and XM... These guys have been successful selling wires, buy can they sell birds? Hmmm...
They'll be re-positioned over Africa or some other third world nation providing them an instant communications systems, that otherwise, would be torn down by gorrillas (fighters).
If you look at their sales forecasts, they're in the thousands, in reality, should be 100's. They need millions to be listening. These birds are very, very expensive.
There's another service coming down the pike called AirTV... It's digital satellite TV broadcasted directly to Airplanes. (The EM-Wave theory has to account for the differing altitudes, Ionisphere and all that. It's complicated stuff). It was complicated in figuring out how to broadcast to moving targets... With Satellite TV, you've got to point your attennas at the birds.
Even if every /.'er got the service, it still would'nt be enough.
I hope I'm wrong, and that it works out.
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I would NOT pay monthly for this... (Score:2)
by Controlio on Wednesday December 12, @12:39PM (#2693975)
(User #78666 Info)
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Sure this is great technology and all, but why should I be forced to pay $10/month for music I can get for free on regular radio? Sure it's not digital quality, but for the most part it's good enough. Plus, this new "digital satellite radio" can't be as robust as regular analog radio. What's going to happen everytime you go under a cement overpass or are sitting in a parking garage? Is my new fabulous digital solution going to "skip" 50 times on my average daily commute? Sorry, digital quality audio just isn't worth it if this is the case.
What's more, when I decide I want a song in digital quality, that's what I have my car minidisc deck for. I have an optical connection from my computer to my standalone minidisc recorder, and I record digital music (usually MP3s) to my heart's content, and take the minidisc into my car. Even in mono (~150min) it sounds absolutely perfect on my car stereo (6 speakers, 1 sub).
If they made a flavor of Satellite Radio with commercials that was FREE, then I might consider getting a satellite receiver. Until that time, I can't imagine getting one. In fact, when I hear my friends talking about getting a satellite radio, I chime in "Are you really going to pay $10 per month for radio?" and they immediately respond, "They charge a monthly fee??" It'll be interesting to see how much of the wow factor will wear off when people go to their car audio shop and find out there's a monthly fee for a car stereo.
I only see two ways for this to really take off. One option would be to add an extra $250 or $500 to each new vehicle pricetag, to act as a sort of "down payment" on the satellite radio service. That way, at least you get two years (or four) of the service "for free" with your vehicle purchase, and after that time you can decide if you want to stick with it or not. The only other option I see, is to stick some commercials in the service, and offer a free alternative. Put ads on the LCD, regular audio commercials, whatever is necessary... but I can guarantee you this, I would never, ever, pick up one of these stereos if I knew I would have to pay $10/month indefinitely just to USE that incredibly expensive receiver I bought. No way.
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US lagging again?? (Score:2)
by martin on Wednesday December 12, @12:40PM (#2693980)
(User #1336 Info | http://members.tripod.co.uk/~martindyn)
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I hate to brag but we've had Digital radio in the Uk for a while now..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/digitalradio/
Of course we have slightly less red tape to go through, but it's interesting wrt to broadcast/cellphones how you guys in the US seem to lagging behind other countries. I guess making the frequencies available is the main problem??
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XM radio, same bad music as local radio (Score:1)
by DeMorganLaw on Wednesday December 12, @12:40PM (#2693984)
(User #543089 Info)
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Satellite Radio really does not provide any more advantages than regular old FM band Radio. For 150$, and 12$ a month I doubt I will be any happier than I will with what is on the free airwaives right now. No radio station will ever appeal to the music I want to hear without mixing in crap half the time. The fact is, the best DJ in the world is yourself, I just burn the songs I want to listen to onto a CD and when it gets old I burn something else from my library of MP3s. Grow a spine and start listening to the music you like, don't put up with the crap that these radio stations want to feed you as trendy or cool.
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"Hype"??? (Score:2)
by decipher_saint on Wednesday December 12, @12:41PM (#2693985)
(User #72686 Info | http://www.lost-telemetry.com/)
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I've heard about satellite radio on and off for at least five years now, but there was no "hype" (directed towards MY demographic at least :-\ ). IMHO, satellite radio is great for people in out of the way places or who are on the move all the time, but is this a large enough market to justify the amount of money it takes to pay for upkeep?
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This succeeds if it is sold in the car lot. (Score:1)
by barfy on Wednesday December 12, @12:41PM (#2693996)
(User #256323 Info)
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This needs to be sold like leather trim, and alloy wheels...
Wrap it into the cost of the vehicle and put it into the monthly payment. (And come up with a "lifetime price" like $300 dollars).
In the course of a few years you will start seeing tons of new subscribers....
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Yes and No... (Score:2)
by linuxrunner (carter@mcarterbrownDOTcom) on Wednesday December 12, @12:42PM (#2694001)
(User #225041 Info | http://www.mcarterbrown.com/)
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I honestly believe that people will pay for such a convienence. I personally would love to have music playing that doesn't cut in and out while I'm driving a long distance. Or trying to find a good radio station that doesn't play country way up in northern vermont or maine.
And no advertisements! yes, yes, yes!
But the real question is this: "Will the satelite radio compainies get enough subscribers to sustain themselves"
This is very important and should really be looked into first. I mean, so many wireless internet companies failed. We just saw @thome go under just recently, and they had a LARGE customer base.
Regretfully, very few companies could pull this off. And I firmly believe that the only ones who will, are the ones that are already established such as Time-Warner or Microsoft. They already have the capital and the means and they can suffer the losses that will incur for the early years of this new business cycle. Not some startup.
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Rock and Roll? (Score:2, Funny)
by Havokmon (rick@havo[ ].com ['kmon' in gap]) on Wednesday December 12, @12:42PM (#2694006)
(User #89874 Info | http://www.havokmon.com/ | Last Journal: Thursday September 27, @04:18PM)
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So if they have to put two more satellites up, will they be named Sex and Drugs?
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Pricing (Score:1)
by chicagothad (davistd@hotmail.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:43PM (#2694012)
(User #227885 Info | http://www.thaddavis.com/)
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XM Digital Radio? Does it really matter if it is digital? My freakin' Chevrolet Cavalier [chevrolet.com] is so damn loud even my CDs sound like crap. Why would I ever shell out $300 buck plus a subscription for one of these!
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Talk (Score:1)
by mblumber (blumberg@hotmail.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:43PM (#2694017)
(User #267394 Info | http://slashdot.org/ | Last Journal: Tuesday March 05, @01:56PM)
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I wonder whether WestWoodOne will allow their talk to go over XM. I can't listen to Don and Mike and it's driving me nuts.
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I want a Kerbango instead (Score:2)
by toupsie on Wednesday December 12, @12:44PM (#2694021)
(User #88295 Info | http://www.junkscience.com/)
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I would rather that 3Com bring back the Kerbango I wanted for months and months (I pre-ordered it from Amazon as soon as it was announced) and it was canned before it was released -- a victim of 3Com's Internet Appliance division. With CDs, car MP3 players (such as a 1,000 song iPod) and 5 AM talk radio stations, who needs Satellite Radio? I would have loved to have the 1,000s of channels of Internet radio from a Kerbango sitting on my desk instead.
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Very old news here. (Score:1)
by Sarin (msnbill@microsoft.com) on Wednesday December 12, @12:44PM (#2694022)
(User #112173 Info | http://free.open.pub...t.scriptkiddies.com/ | Last Journal: Sunday March 03, @08:22PM)
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I live in Europe and have digital satelite receiver pointed at the Astra and HotBird satellites. I receive about 700 digital radio stations here for over a couple of years now - what's the big deal? Well some stations do not have any commercials and stuff like that and they sound very clear, but most likely they're inside some subscriber program.. luckely I can upgrade my seca decoder with new codes, so there are no costs involved. Nonetheless I don't listen to the radio, I'd rather watch one of the dozen discovery or national geographic channels.
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Backup Satellite? (Score:1)
by shlamo on Wednesday December 12, @12:45PM (#2694030)
(User #541027 Info)
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"XM Radio uses two Boeing HS-702 satellites that are positioned over the East and West Coasts of the United States. The satellites, aptly named "Rock" and "Roll", maintain a geostationary orbit at 22,000 miles above the earth. XM Radio has a third back-up satellite on the ground should something go wrong in orbit."
A backup satellite that is earthbound? Hmm.. that's like having a backup harddrive lying on the floor next to your computer.
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Where's my Rivo? (Score:1)
by daves on Wednesday December 12, @12:45PM (#2694031)
(User #23318 Info | Last Journal: Monday August 20, @01:45PM)
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What I really want is a product that record scheduled audio programming of interest and syncs it to a portable player. The source of the audio is not important.
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one place it will do good..... (Score:1)
by the_2nd_coming on Wednesday December 12, @12:45PM (#2694040)
(User #444906 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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is country clubs and resturants.
$10 per month is not a bad cost to get comercial free music pumped into your business.
no more tapes etc.
also, the car is probably the best place to put this system as well. the dealer can give you this option and with it, your monthly subscription is roled into your car payment. yes, you are paying for it, but psycologicly you don't feel it.
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Is iPod the answer to every story these days? (Score:2)
by sulli on Wednesday December 12, @12:46PM (#2694042)
(User #195030 Info | http://www.sulli.org)
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Seriously, with iPod (or any MP3 jukebox) and a little cassette adapter, my music worries are over. OVER. No need for satellite or any other radio.
What I would pay for in my car is 100% reliable, commercial-free newscasts from BBC, NPR, and CBS News. Just the news, not the music. Someone make that happen for a lower price, and I'm there.
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I'd get one but... (Score:1)
by MarkusH on Wednesday December 12, @12:47PM (#2694049)
(User #198450 Info)
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the receivers are just too expensive. $10/month for subscription isn't terrible, but I am not going to pay $300 dollars (and those are the low end versions) for just the hardware (stereo system not included).
Now, once the receivers get down to $50-$100 price range, I'll consider it, but not until then.
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Awesome! (Score:1)
by shepd on Wednesday December 12, @12:47PM (#2694050)
(User #155729 Info | http://slashdot.org/ | Last Journal: Friday January 25, @12:51AM)
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Another American satellite communication that Canadians can hack legitimately!
Keep 'em coming America! We _love_ your kindness towards us!
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I'm totally pumped about it!! (Score:1)
by Stalemate on Wednesday December 12, @12:47PM (#2694053)
(User #105992 Info)
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I see a lot of people saying that this isn't so great with mp3 players in cars now, etc, etc.
But, to me, this is the coolest thing. I commute about 1 hour each way every day to work. If I put in a new CD in the morning I've already heard it all the way through twice by the time I get home in the evening. It doesn't matter how many CD's/mp3's I have, everything always seems old to me with that much listening going on.
As far as local radio goes, it's OK, but no local stations really play any music I like, so I end up listening to the same old morning talk show every day and then 1 CD (all the way through) in the afternoon.
Playing MP3's in my car would be nice too, but it is about more than music to me. Looking at the XM station line up, I see lots of things on there tha I would like to listen to that just wouldn't be the same without being live. I really like the idea of listening to ESPN radio or The Discovery Channel.
Plus, I like my radio to be a little unpredictable! No matter how many mp3s I have, they are all gonna be stuff that I've heard before. Even on random play, after the first note or two, I know exactly what to expect. I like to channel surf, and listen to new things.
I think satellite radio is right up my alley.
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Hmmmm 16 hours????? (Score:1)
by the_2nd_coming on Wednesday December 12, @12:47PM (#2694054)
(User #444906 Info | http://slashdot.org/)
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I don't know what they are thinking, 16 hours is not a good deal. why would I want to pay for a service that I can not use on demand?
XM got it right with the stationary satelites
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XM radio poor bitrate (Score:5, Informative)
by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 12, @12:49PM (#2694061)
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I had XM radio, I took it back. Simply put the quality was about the same as 96Kbit Mp3. It had great selection the music was awesome. The no commercials ruled. But everytime a song I liked came on and I cranked it up, the lack of quality and compression artifacts drove me away.
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Target audience? (Score:2, Insightful)
by mr.buddylee (brad@@@pobs...cc) on Wednesday December 12, @12:50PM (#2694065)
(User #541034 Info)
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Who is the supposed to appeal to? I personally wouldn't use it with a 10 minute commute, even with a 30 minute commute, I can't justify $10/month for the radio.
Also, do you think this will appeal to the soccer moms of america? or the older population? Too technical maybe or just not worth it?
He said "are more than 200 million registered vehicles in the United States" but to reach their number they still need 4.5 million of those? Are there 4.5 million people ready to chuck out $10/month with the uncertainty of the economy?
I hope they do well, but I personally think they're about a year too late. A year ago, everyone wanted a new gadget, now, I don't think thats the case...
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-- Larry Wall in <199710071721.KAA19014@wall.org>
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