The Last DJ
“The reason these two companies have 13 million subscribers willing to cough up $12.95 a month for something we all grew up thinking should be free is that commercial radio has self-destructed … Really, can you think of an industry (okay, maybe American automakers) that has frittered away such huge advantages and sent its customers scrambling for alternatives?”
Howard Kurtz, The Washington Post, via Instapundit, http://instapundit.com/
The Best Variety …
“I severely doubt that prices will go up by much (thought perhaps they should — satellite radio has yet to turn a profit), and I’m confident that there will be more selection.”
Bryan Caplan, EconLoghttp://econlog.econlib.org/
Phrase That Pays: Merger
“Common sense says that they will push up the prices once they become one and will thus leave a bad taste in the customers’ mouth.”
Jyoti Pal, The Money Timeshttp://www.themoneytimes.com/
Cover Band?
“If XM and Sirius can successfully complete the daunting gauntlet of regulatory approval, technological integration and corporate culture melding it could provide a roadmap for DirecTV and Dish to do the same.”
Larry Gerbrandt, Nielsen Media Researchhttp://blog.everyonecounts.tv/
It All Sounds the Same
“One story behind the XM/Sirius merger announced today is how much money the two companies spent trying to differentiate themselves in the minds of radio consumers. Other than to a rabid few, the result was de nada: most people just called them 'those satellite radio guys,’ and never bothered any more to attempt to keep straight who, precisely, was whom.”
Paul Kedrosky, Infectious Greedhttp://paul.kedrosky.com/
More Than a Feeling
“The growing feeling on the probability of an XM and Sirius merger actually making it through the regulatory gauntlet appears to be less than originally expected.”
Ryan Saghir, Orbitcast, http://www.orbitcast.com/
Money for Nothing
“Given their high debt loads, low cash position, and high cash burn rates these companies need to plan for survival in the event that the merger does not go through. So do investors.”
Peter Cohan, bloggingstockshttp://www.bloggingstocks.com/
