Has Satellite Radio Peaked?
Fri Dec 8, 2006 6:37PM EST
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This week, both Sirius and XM Radio reported fewer than expected new subscriptions, leading to speculation that each of the profligate, money-losing ventures has reached its peak. And on Wednesday, reports surfaced that Sirius and XM are considering a merger, though XM has since downplayed this rumor. In today's Wall Street Journal, journalist Sarah McBride writes about the waning of satellite radio interest and offers up some examples of people who either don't bother to sign up for a subscription because it's too complicated or who return satellite radios because they just don't find the services compelling enough.
I'm a music lover, and for that reason, I can't completely write off either XM or Sirius, but I have to say that I've never been completely sold on the quality of the programming, even though it's millions of miles ahead of FM radio (which I think we can all agree has become a travesty, with the exception of a few NPR and college radio stations). Meanwhile, the hardware is not without its issues. Here are a few of my gripes:
Despite all the channels, I still can't find anything to listen to: I'm a fickle listener and a music snob. Somehow, I find each of the many specialized channels on either Sirius or XM to almost be too much of one good thing. How about a few channels that are more eclectic? I don't want to only hear all-'80s-all-the-time or just alternative—I'd like to maybe hear an eclectic mix of music that casts a wider net, which is why I prefer well-curated music selections like the kinds I hear on KCRW or the archived shows on the BBC Radio web site (though Sirius offers a live feed of Radio One, thank goodness). Or the "radio" channels I can get on Napster, Rhapsody, or Yahoo! Music, where I can not only create themed channels based on a specific artist or genre but also advance to the next song. It's only a matter of time before it will be easy to listen to streamed Internet radio in the car (without violating a cell phone carrier's contract, at any rate), but in the meantime, I can get my music fix by taping Internet radio with a program like Replay Radio and putting it on my iPod.
Reception is spotty in places: I can't tell you how many times I've lost reception with the Pioneer Inno I was testing last summer, with and without the antenna. Satellite radio was heavily promoted as this new radio that would work across state borders and pretty much anywhere, but I get reception interruptions whether I'm walking around rooms in my apartment or driving around.
The hardware is still clunky and, for the most part, ugly: Even the sexy-looking Stiletto for Sirius and more portable Inno for XM leave something to be desired when compared to the easy-to-use and easy-on-the-eye iPod, and every other satellite radio contraption is about as stylish as a CB radio (see picture!). But I don't think that either XM or Sirius are going to stay in the hardware business forever. Sirius and XM are a lot more compelling when they're built in to other music-blasting products, be they A/V receivers at home or a factory-installed sound systems in the car.
Sound is not CD quality: Whatever that means, but seriously, no matter how good the sound system (and I'm using a pretty nice Pioneer Elite VSX-82TXS 7.1 A/V receiver and Canton CD-220 5.1 speaker-subwoofer package at the moment), the sound quality of satellite radio is just as crappy, if not crappier, than good old FM radio (and don't even get me started on HD Radio). And I'm only complaining because "CD quality" was one of the big selling points of satellite radio back before it launched. I've been trying out the 5.1 XM HD on the aforementioned Canton speakers and find it to be less appealing than the THX and Dolby surround options that the A/V receiver offers me.
It's not all bad: As a music lover, I prefer to have the satellite radio option than not, and I think the ability to just add the Terk XM Mini-tuner to a XM Connect-and-Play-ready A/V receiver is a nice, clutter-free option that allows me to welcome XM into my home a bit more (and I think will help the format in the future).
All I'm saying is that XM and Sirius could use some improving before I sign on wholeheartedly. And I know I'm not alone on this.
Anyone out there care to weigh in on satellite radio? Do you love it or hate it? Do you think it's overhyped, or are has it changed your life?
Related links:
How to Record Streaming Internet Radio
Comments on Has Satellite Radio Peaked?
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2 Posted by detrichpix on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:42PM EDT Report Abuse
Sounds like you might be getting paid by FM radio to writhe you BS blog. I drive all over the ountry and have NEVER had a dropped signal, and believe me, I have driven across some of the most out of the way places in this great land, in some of the worst weather. When have you done that listenint to FM or AM. Remember this technology is just a few years old, and once ist is integrated into most manufactured vehicles, it will become mainstream. I have an S50 in my Honda, replacing the built in XM radio. I believe in the technology so mych I bought stock in both companies and believe in a few years, both services will have over 10 million subscribers easily. I can count on one hand the number of times I have listened to regular radio since I got my Sirius several years ago!! Remember, FM is just over 30 years old.
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3 Posted by john_m_hyman on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:39PM EDT Report Abuse
I have had XM for the past half year. I really like commercial free music and with my Audiovox Xpress wired directly into my car stereo the sound quality is decent (not as great as I would like but very listenable). I only lose signal if stopped for a light under an overpass. My biggest grip is that their best stations are online only and cannot be gotten on the road - like XM 51 (XM Music Lab) I love progressive and jam bands but can't get it from satellite in my car with a paid subscription??? On the plus side, their reggae station has some great stuff from the islands I can't even find here. It could be better (XM please make your "online only" stations available on the road!) but I couldn't live without it in my car now.
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4 Posted by semicrayze on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:12PM EDT Report Abuse
SATELITE CAN BE GOOD OR BAD? i have both the serius and the XM and theres only 1 difference in the two,if you like music sirius is the way to go.but if you like talk XM is the way togo the music on XM is all this to cool for the room stuff alot of it you here is songs that knowone knows accept if you have the album and you listened to the whole thing but sirius has a much better music selection they play more of the hits,but onthe other hand XM has way better talk like Opie and Anthony compared to a washed up Howard Stern, the truckers channel is better on XM if i had to choose one i would choose XM for me its better cause i like the talk part,and ther are cities in wich its hard to get signal,i have XM rodie 2 and i have to change the frequency quite a bit wich is annoying, but i love this satellit thing i drive about 3,000 miles a week in my truck and i dont lose signal and if you drive alot i would suggest buying one because youll love it but i would not have it in my car or house most likely if i were home every day
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5 Posted by samsat on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:02PM EDT Report Abuse
I tried both systems for over a year and I ended up unhappy with both of them. I didn't find any major reception problems when I was on the road and enjoyed the services a lot on long trips; for me that's what made the subscriptions worthwhile. My reception problems were all indoors...I could only pick up the broadcasts on certain sides of my house and it varied based on the hour of the day and the location of the satelite. When I was relocated in my office building to a different side of the building with a different exposure to the skies, I lost XM completely and that's when I switched over to Sirius. My gripe with Sirius is that the equipment I bought to recieve the signal was shoddy and I went through three different antennas that quit working within just a few months each time. Sirius would not reimburse me for the crap antennas and I finally just said to hell with them and cancelled the service. I was already ticked that XM had locked up all the major league baseball broadcasts for something like the next decade just after I switched to Sirius. I would never have switched if I had known that was coming. Anyway, bottom line, is that I didn't feel like I was getting my money's worth from either service considering what I paid for the radios and antennas and how spotty the indoor service is. I just don't spend enough time on the road to justify the need...especially since I can use my iPod with complete control of over 15,000 songs from my own collection.
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6 Posted by crazymudman on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:30PM EDT Report Abuse
WOW! I am relieved. I thought you were going to kill yourself at the end of your story. You need therapy, but you would probably hate that too. I try not to be around depressing people and I will be sure to avoid you in the future. Is the glass half empty or two quarters empty for you?
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7 Posted by playnow2345 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:14PM EDT Report Abuse
Satellite radio is the greatest value in entertainment to come along since the internet.Especially for the car. What do you want for less than 40 cents a day? It is in a niche of it's own and makes driving much more enjoyable. I wouldn't consider buying a car in the future, that didn't come standard with it. I have never experienced any reception problems either indoors or out, in over 3 years. The sound quality is close to CD quality without static or fading signals. (or commercials) I have Sirius. It is still radio and it's wrong to compare it to the ipod or CD's. They are used quite differently.
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8 Posted by mickster1 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:19PM EDT Report Abuse
OK, so I get that you're a little cool on satellite. But lord, man, the alternative is completely and utterly AWFUL. Sure, the music selection doesn't compare to iPod, but compared to FM radio? There IS no comparison. The selection is better. The variety is better. PLUS there are no commericals. NO COMMERCIALS!!! If you enjoy talk radio or news, again, satellite absolutely CREAMS traditional radio. I commute about 2 hours a day, and I look FORWARD to getting in the car for my drive. Is satellite radio perfect? God now. (Although the only reception problem I'm ever had is when I drive under some bridges -- the radio reception drops for about a second.) All I can say is think of the alternative: traditional radio is just horrific. The station selections limited, the commercials are vast, the music selection is horrible. Everything's censored. I think about when I was little. TV was limited to the three major networks, PBS, and a handful of UHF stations. It SUCKED. Now we have cable TV, which is wrought with issues. But could you live with watching non-cable TV programming? Didn't think so. And I can't live without satellite.
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9 Posted by earache100 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:50PM EDT Report Abuse
I have had Sirius radio for the past two years and love it and never listen to FM anymore. I have three subscriptions I pay for each month (one for the car which is OEM installed, one for the house and one for the other car), plus the CD quality premium service on line. The selection of music on the music stations is excellent and the sound quality is excellent (Way better than FM without any loss of signal going from one city to another). I have listened to the HD radio which is suppose to be CD quality sound and I cannot tell the difference on my home stereo between my Sirius directly connected (not using the FM transmitter) and HD radio. In additon, I also have an IPOD for music but with the hassle of having to carry it with me, downloading the music, and maintaining the playlist, I had rather just turn on what I want and let the radio manage my playlist plus I can listen to "talk" if I want. Satellite radio is here to stay because it give consumers a great product for their money (commercial free music and "on demand" talk radio with a wide selection of topics (From Howard to FOX to the Patriot channel to comedy to Discovery). Satellite radio is still just getting started. They project to miss their projected numbers and people are all over them saying "they have reached their peak". Even with the lowered sub count the growth is still phenomenal because it is a great product. I don't who pays Tom Samiljan salary to write, but I totally disagree with his comments on Satellite radio.
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10 Posted by billfrazier1 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:07PM EDT Report Abuse
I have XM Satellite and have had it for 3-4 years. Although it is not perfect, I love it. I believe in the technology so much that I paid in advance for 5 years. I just wish XM offered a lifetime subscription like Sirius. I have bought into the technology by buying XM and Sirius stock. The outside reception is excellent and depending on the populace of where you live, then hopefully you will have a terrestrial antenna near you in a cell tower or something to cover you while inside. Overall with the capabilities of automatically recording music and talk shows and the new players mp3 functions, there is no comparison to the "Ipods". This is THE BEST technology and wait till XM becomes available on cell phones.
1 Posted by jworld_6502_24 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:45PM EDT Report Abuse
i've had sirius for about two years now, since then i have gotten my brother and parents and not to mention my grandfather to sign up(and it did not take much selling). i don't think i have listened to the regular radio since. i can sit in traffic without banging my head on the stirring wheel and it comes in great at work on the internet. nfl, howard stern, slim shady and many other channels. i still to this day come across channels that for some reason or another i passed up in the past. i have never listened to xm, so i really can't make a comparison. but what i do know is sirius has almost doubled their subscription base and xm has pretty much stayed the same. the hardware needs more improvement, and the sound quality is not that great if you get an external receiver. my suggestion is to get a radio that lets you install a tuner internally, trust me is sounds like cd quality then. all an all i have been impressed with sirius, i can never go back to regular radio now, if you have the dough, i suggest you invest in satellite radio.