Great article about the demise of Sat Radio Technology

[mrpacs]

Sirius XM should dump satellites for the Web. - By Farhad Manjoo - Slate Magazine


In addition to going to a Web fee based service, I think Sirius/XM should also make HowardTV available via the Web. It's time to scrap the satellite's!

 

[sportboy]

The guy makes a lot of sense. 13 dollars a month for a non Sirius subscriber to have access to scaled(amount of stations) down internet listening is crazy. Sirius needs some fresh faces and fresh ideas.

The company is on their death bed and they are talking about raising prices in this economy. Management just doesn't get it.

 

[Sirius Rich]

But golly, I really like my satellite radio in the car. Can the web feed my entertainment habit driving around Texas?

 

[Jleimer]

Possibly if you can buy alot of crap.

 

[Supafly]

But unlike other business models that were killed off by the digital transition, satellite radio isn't ancient. The dream began in the late 1980s, when Martin Rothblatt, a lawyer, entrepreneur, and satellite enthusiast, began to lobby the Federal Communications Commission to devote a part of the spectrum to radio beamed from the sky. (Rothblatt, who later underwent a sex-change operation and became Martine, now runs the Terasem Movement, an organization that aims to educate the public on "creating consciousness in self-replicating machines.")

Best part of the article.

What does Martine think of this mess now?

 

[Fergz99]

Internet streaming is cool and all, but I can't stream in my car and you need passwords and permission to use some networks.

If they can find away to always make the internet hot and available for everyone to use then wifi will be an option, but right now its MP3s that are king.

 

[mrpacs]

Internet streaming is cool and all, but I can't stream in my car and you need passwords and permission to use some networks.

If they can find away to always make the internet hot and available for everyone to use then wifi will be an option, but right now its MP3s that are king.

I haven't played an mp3 in about 2 years. Internet Steaming is gold in my life for now at least.

 

[Fergz99]

I haven't played an mp3 in about 2 years. Internet Steaming is gold in my life for now at least.

What do you do in your car ?

 

[kingchuck69]

With more and more people getting laptops and other internet-based devices, plus many towns developing free city-wide wi-fi systems, internet streaming everywhere could be a possibility years down the road.

But for now, it's Sirius in my car.

 

[TSS Taylor]

It seems like peoples biggest gripes are when SIRIUS XM removes something they like, whether Popular or Niche.

But then lately people's suggestions to the company are to remove content or features that don't appeal to them personally, because how possible could anyone enjoy these things.

This article is ridiculous. It will make far more sense in another time and it would obviously appeal to more people who spend time online. But there are a TON of people who have Satellite Radio that don't. I can attest to that from speaking with lots of subscribers. First of all the number of orders we get from people that don't have a computer or there own email is about 10-20%. So you can count them as canceling.

If SIRIUS XM for example took Farhads advice they would be in a far worse situation. People streaming SIRIUS XM costs SIRIUS XM money from bandwidth, it's not free. Of course the Satellites are a fortune, but if you lose the Satellites you lose a ton of subscribers. You will lose coverage big time. When the XM Satellite was down a couple years ago people weren't happy. Not everyone lives in Farhads world. Lots of people are in situations where the Satellite Feed is the only option. Hell tons of people HAVE online access at work but SIRIUS Satellite Radio - The Best Radio On Radio or XM Satellite Radio - America's #1 Satellite Radio Service are blocked.

 

[Fergz99]

Hell tons of people HAVE online access at work but SIRIUS Satellite Radio - The Best Radio On Radio or XM Satellite Radio - America's #1 Satellite Radio Service are blocked.

I know I can't stream any content at work. We aren't allowed to use our pcs to stream and there is no way they would let use use a wifi device either.

If you are using let's say an iphone to stream, do they charge you airtime for usage or is it free to connect to a wifi stream ? How much a month is the iphone service >

 

[mrpacs]

What do you do in your car ?

Sirius Stiletto 100 with Car Kit. I have listened to Pandora and Slacker via iPhone in my car as well. Granted, not through my car's audio system......yet.

 

[mrpacs]

I know I can't stream any content at work. We aren't allowed to use our pcs to stream and there is no way they would let use use a wifi device either.

If you are using let's say an iphone to stream, do they charge you airtime for usage or is it free to connect to a wifi stream ? How much a month is the iphone service >

I think I pay $40 per month for unlimited internet access on my iPhone.

 

[mrpacs]

I tried to edit the title of this thread from "Great article about the demise of Sirius/XM " to "Great article about the demise of Satellite Radio Technology" but it only show's up in the Thread title's sub-heading. The article is not discussing the demise of Sirius/XM but rather the Satellite Technology.

 

[Fergz99]

I think I pay $40 per month for unlimited internet access on my iPhone.

So 40 bucks a month just for internet, plus what you pay for the phone service. That sounds like its more then $13.00 for SatRad. I just don't see how wifi is that much better.

 

[sportboy]

It will soon...

But golly, I really like my satellite radio in the car. Can the web feed my entertainment habit driving around Texas?

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

If I wanted internet radio, I would use the free internet radio available now. There would be no advantage for Sirius XM over another provider.

But I don't want internet radio. My ISP has a cap on downloads after which I start to pay a fortune. I do not have WiFi on my phone (too expensive). I do not have WiFi in my car at all (and when it comes it will not be cheap so I will pass).

I like the sats.

 

[radsatdaily]

The article doesn't make much sense. If you lose the satellites you are losing a ton of subscribers. The internet is just one of multiple possible distribution models for satellite radio. The satellite being the most important.

I do however agree with the article that Sirius XM needs to do a better job with making its service available on internet radio devices (iphones, blackberries, windows mobile, etc).

 

[syphix]

The author of the article needs to travel outside of the major city he lives in: there are BIG holes in 3G coverage (necessary for good, solid quality streaming). 5-10 years from now may be a different story.

 

[atlwxman]

The author of the article needs to travel outside of the major city he lives in: there are BIG holes in 3G coverage (necessary for good, solid quality streaming). 5-10 years from now may be a different story.

That is a great point.

Truckers and other long distance drivers are not going to be able to access internet radio anytime soon.