FCC to make Sirius decision
TEXT OF STORY
Scott Jagow: Today’s a big day for the satellite radio business. Shareholders of XM and Sirius vote on a merger between the two. Sounds like a done deal, but the government’s opinion is another story. Here’s Lisa Napoli.
Lisa Napoli: The Federal Trade Commission said last week it’s OK with the XM-Sirius Deal. Whether the Federal Communications Commission will agree still isn’t clear. They’ve asked both companies to submit more details by the end of this week.
Ever since XM and Sirius said last February they wanted to get hitched, there’s been brou-ha-ha over whether a merger would hurt consumers.
McVay Media analyst Holland Cooke says now, it’s looking better for the deal.
Holland Cooke: The momentum seems to have shifted in its favor, notwithstanding Herculean efforts by the National Association of Broadcasters to put the stink on it.
Cooke says that’s because Sirius has promised to offer a-la-carte subscriptions. He says there’s another reason the FCC will probably say yes:
Cooke: Government regulators historically have always been kind to pioneers.
We should know if that’s true by the end of the year.
In Los Angeles, I’m Lisa Napoli for Marketplace.
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