Sirius Satellite, il nuovo operatore unico crea subito confusione

Sul suo blog per il Los Angeles Times il commentatore del mercato radiofonico americano Jim Puzzanghera si occupa della fusione tra Sirius e XM Radio e sulle possibili offerte del nuovo operatore unico. Per il momento il risultato sembra essere negativo: i futuri abbonati dovranno districarsi tra offerte variegate e complesse legate alla nuova tipologia di sottoscrizioni "à la carte". Prima almeno si potevano scegliere due pacchetti da 12.95 dollari ciascuno a seconda dei propri gusti in materia di palinsesti. E' già un primo segnale, piuttosto eloquente, di uno scenario che si poteva prevedere. Se approvi la creazione di un monopolio, le regole di controllo e tutela del consumatore che imponi artificialmente, si ripercuotono a sfavore di tutti. Pegio el tacon del buso...

[...]Sirius and XM customers, who have gotten used to simplicity (both companies offered only one package at the identical $12.95 price) now will have a somewhat confusing array of other choices.
With three months, Sirius XM must ....
... allow customers to choose whatever channels they want -- the a la carte offering mentioned above -- and introduce a radio capable of allowing them to do that.
There will be two a la carte offerings.
One for $6.99 a month will allow you to choose 50 Sirius channels from a subset of 100 Sirius channels (Sirius has more than 130); or 50 XM channels from a subset of 100 XM channels (XM has more than 170).
The other, for $14.99 a month, will allow you to pick 100 channels, with Sirius customers able to select from a company-determined "best of" XM's channels, and XM customers allowed to select from the "best of" Sirius channels.
Those programming selections haven't been released, but it's a good bet they'll include some exclusive content, such as XM's Major League Baseball broadcasts and channels featuring Oprah Winfrey and Bob Dylan. They likely will also include Sirius' National Football League broadcasts, NASCAR coverage and Howard Stern channels (he's so popular, he has two).
But for those options you'll need to buy a new radio that is capable of receiving individualized channel packages.
For customers who don't want to buy a new radio, there will be several other packages available within three months.
For $9.99 a month, customers will be able to choose either a "mostly music" package or a "news sports and talk" package. For $16.99, Sirius customers will get all their existing channels, plus the best of XM, and vice versa for XM customers. And finally, in a concession to FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin, the companies agreed to offer a family-friendly version of Sirius or XM channels (presumably without Stern or Opie & Anthony) for $11.95 a month. There will also be a family-friendly "best of" offering that will cost $14.99.
[...]

Matrimonio al verde per Sirius e XM Radio oggi sposi.

Ormai l'approvazione era nell'aria ma adesso è arrivato l'ok ufficiale: Sirius Satellite può rilevare XM Radio e dar vita all'operatore singolo di radio digitale satellitare negli USA. Qualche condizione da rispettare ci sarà, ma tutto sommato pochissimo per quello che è a tutti gli effetti un monopolio. Una faccenda con cui gli americani non hanno particolare dimestichezza. Il nuovo provider dovrà bloccare i prezzi per tre anni e dovrà riservare una parte di frequenze a contenuti "minoritari" (chissà chi si farà avanti visti i costi di produzione...).
In tutta la questione la cosa che ha stupito più di tutte è il tempo che la FCC ha impiegato per macinare la sua sentenza. Per le casse dei novelli sposi, già duramente provate, la festa di matrimonio rischia di trasformarsi in un colpo di grazia.

FCC approves XM-Sirius satellite radio merger
By JOHN DUNBAR

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s $3.3 billion buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. will mean millions of subscribers will be able to receive programming from both services, while executives say it will create huge cost savings for the industry.
Federal regulators formally approved the merger of the nation's only two satellite radio operators Friday.
"I think it's going to be, in the end, a good thing for consumers and be in the public interest," Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin told The Associated Press. "Consumers will enjoy a variety of programming at reduced prices and more diversified programming choices."
Subscribers will not have to buy new radios to receive a mix of programming from both services, according to the companies. But if they want to pursue a special pay-per-channel a la carte option, they will need new sets.
The FCC voted 3-2 to approve the buyout, with the tiebreaker coming Friday night from Republican commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate.
Tate had insisted that the companies settle charges that they violated FCC rules before she would approve the deal. The companies agreed this week to pay $19.7 million to the U.S. Treasury for violations related to radio receivers and ground-based signal repeaters.
The long-running regulatory review was watched closely by exasperated investors anxious for a resolution as well as 18 million-plus satellite radio customers with questions about what impact the merger would have on their service.
The approval was a major blow for the land-based radio industry, which lobbied hard against the buyout. It was also opposed by consumer groups, various members of Congress and state attorneys general, all of whom argued a satellite radio merger would hurt consumers and was not in the public interest.
"They kept each other on their toes," Democratic commissioner Jonathan Adelstein said of the two companies. "I hope they keep their edge and don't become a fat and happy monopoly."
Adelstein voted against the buyout as did fellow Democrat Michael Copps. Joining Martin and Tate in approving the deal was Republican commissioner Robert McDowell.
The companies said the combination would create hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings and lead to greater choice in programming for subscribers and flexible pricing options.
Tate released a statement Friday night praising the commission's decision to punish the companies for rules violations before acting on the merger and supporting pro-consumer conditions imposed on the deal.
Under the terms of the consent decree, XM will pay $17.5 million and Sirius will pay $2.2 million to resolve interference complaints and violations related to land-based signal repeaters the companies operate to deliver programming.
The final merger agreement did not require the combined company to include a chip in its radios that will allow customers to receive digital signals from land-based radio stations, which would have helped the land-based radio industry.
Tate, who was lobbied intensely by the industry in the final weeks, said she "could not in good conscience support a government-mandated requirement on the backs of American consumers at this time."
Martin said the agreement is nearly identical to what he circulated among other commissioners when he first recommended approval for the deal more than a month ago.
The companies first applied for permission to combine in March 2007. The Justice Department approved the deal in March of this year without conditions, saying the companies don't really compete because customers must buy equipment that is exclusive to either XM or Sirius, and subscribers rarely switch providers.
DOJ also agreed with the companies' argument that they compete with other forms of audio entertainment, including digital radio, Internet-based radio stations and even devices like Apple Inc.'s iPod.
FCC approval faced a steeper climb because the companies were prohibited from combining under terms of their licenses. The agency struggled to come up with a way to show that allowing a satellite radio monopoly was in the public interest.
The companies voluntarily agreed to a set of conditions, including a three-year price cap and an 8 percent set-aside of "full-time audio channels" for public interest and minority programming. They will also adopt an "open radio" standard that may lead to a greater variety of features in radios and greater competition among manufacturers.
Sirius and XM also have promised to include a limited "a la carte" offering that would be available within three months of the close of the deal and allow listeners to pay only for the channels they want to receive.

Sirius e XM, le condizioni per l'ok al merger

Svolta inattesa nel lunghissimo braccio di ferro normativo che da 18 mesi ha sospeso il giudizio definitivo sulla richiesta di merger tra i due operatori satellitari americani, Sirius Satellite e XM Radio. Secondo questa lunga corrispondenza AP, il commissario della FCC Jonathan Adelstein, un democratico, sarebbe propenso per dare il suo voto, a questo punto decisivo (i cinque commissari hanno finora espresso due sì, un no e un ni che potrebbe diventare un no), ma solo a determinate condizioni. La prima è un lungo price cap sugli abbonamenti del futuro monopolista. Poi la concessione di un quarto delle frequenze a contenuti minoritari e commerciali. E infine una maggiore apertura dell'hardware, come la capacità di sintonizzare la normale radio analogica. Adelstein auspicherebbe anche l'apertura delle piattaforme hardware, che aprirebbero la strada a nuovi fornitori di apparati di ricezione, ma l'ipotesi non è molto praticabile perché finora i due operatori hanno adottato un modello di business con radio sussidiate, realizzate su specifiche degli operatori stessi. Un modello che non invita affatto alla partecipazione di altri costruttori. Se si vuole aprire l'hardware dei ricevitori Sirius/XM, si deve aprire completamente il mercato e costringere gli abbonati a comprarsi il ricevitore. E se poi nessuno li compra?
Dal canto loro, sembra che i due candidati al merger abbiano accettato di aprire la struttura dei piani di abbonamento introducendo formule à la carte e abbiano garantito che entro un anno saranno disponibili ricevitori capaci di sintonizzarsi sui due diversi sistemi satellitari.

Satellite radio saga takes unexpected turn

By JOHN DUNBAR

WASHINGTON (AP) — During his tenure at the Federal Communications Commission, Jonathan Adelstein has been a fierce critic of government policies that allow big media companies to get bigger. So it came as a surprise when the Democratic commissioner put forth a proposal that would allow the nation's only two satellite radio companies to merge.
Adelstein, the potential deciding vote, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he would support Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.'s $3.1 billion buyout of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. if the companies agree to a six-year price cap and make one-quarter of their satellite capacity available for public interest and minority programming, plus other conditions. It may be that the commissioner, a seasoned political operator who spent 15 years as a Senate staffer, recognized a limited window of opportunity.
Thus far, two of the five members of the commission have voted to approve the satellite radio deal, one vote shy of a majority. All eyes have been on Republican Deborah Taylor Tate, who is expected ultimately to vote in favor of the deal, but as a friend to the broadcast industry that opposes it, has been under intense pressure to reject it. Her reluctance to cast the deciding vote created an opportunity for Adelstein to extract further conditions from the companies. "It's critical that if we're going to allow a monopoly, that we put in adequate consumer protections and make sure they're enforced," Adelstein told the AP on Thursday. Adelstein is seeking stronger concessions than the companies offered voluntarily one month ago. That offer led to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's recommendation that the deal be approved. Robert McDowell, also a Republican, has voted in favor, too. Democrat Michael Copps is expected to be a "no" vote.
Commissioners are able to vote on items "on circulation," meaning by way of computer, rather than at a public meeting. Those votes are generally not made public until all have been cast.
Following Adelstein's offer, Martin, Tate and both companies all declined to respond to requests for comment. XM and Sirius first announced their intent to merge in last year. The Justice Department cleared the combination in March. Martin made his recommendation for approval last month.
The companies have faced a tough challenge in gaining approval because the FCC, in creating the satellite radio industry in 1997, prohibited the only two licensees from merging. In an effort to prove the combination is in the public interest, lawyers for the companies volunteered to submit to a number of conditions, including a three-year price cap, a time frame Adelstein would like to see doubled. They also agreed to turn over 24 channels to noncommercial and minority programming.
Adelstein is seeking 25 percent of the companies' satellite capacity for public interest programming — 10 percent for noncommercial programming and 15 percent for minority programming. That potentially would work out to about 75 channels. XM broadcasts more than 170 channels, Sirius over 130 channels.
The companies also offered to adopt an "open radio" standard, meant to create competition among manufacturers of satellite radios. The condition was met with skepticism because the companies subsidize the price of radios, making it unlikely that competitors will get into the business. Adelstein is proposing that the companies be required to include a digital radio tuner in any radios they subsidize that also include regular, non-digital AM-FM service.
Adelstein also wants to set up an enforcement regime to make sure the companies adhere to the conditions, something that was not outlined in the previous voluntary offer. Sirius and XM have promised to include an "a la carte" offering that would be available within three months of the close of the deal. In addition, they have pledged to offer radios that are capable of receiving both XM and Sirius service within one year.

Fusione XM e Sirius, arriva OK personale del capo FCC

Il Washington Post di stamane rivela che Kevin Martin, il capo della FCC americana, sembra essere deciso a raccomandare ai suoi consiglieri l'OK all'acquisizione di Sirius Satellite da parte di XM Radio. La decisione positiva, affermano le fonti del giornale, è stata favorita dall'accordo degli operatori su un codice di autoregolamentazione che eviterà impennate dei prezzi degli abbonamenti. Finalmente è arrivata la decisione su una proposta avanzata 18 mesi fa. Ora vedremo se un unico operatore di radio satellitare riuscirà a far quadrare i conti di un servizio gradito al pubblico ma penalizzato dagli elevati costi di upfront.

FCC Chair To Support XM-Sirius Merger
By Cecilia Kang
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 16, 2008

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin said yesterday that he will support a merger between the nation's sole satellite radio operators, XM and Sirius, a decision that could remove the last regulatory hurdle in the lengthy and heavily criticized move to make the companies one.
Martin came to the decision after the companies agreed last week to several commitments intended to prevent the monopoly from raising programming prices and from stifling competition among radio makers, aides to the chairman said in an interview yesterday.
(continua)

USA: Su Xm e Sirius la FCC tace da 16 mesi

Se non ci fossero di mezzo due aziende indebitate e una tecnologia che deve ancora dimostrare la sua sostenibilità, somiglierebbe a una barzelletta. In una intervista a CNBC, il capo della FCC ha detto che il regolatore formulerà "presto" il suo giudizio sulla proposta di fusione tra XM Radio e Sirius Satellite. La stampa finanziaria si è scatenata in una ridda di commenti che suonano come altrettante pernacchie. La proposta è stata fatta 16 mesi fa. L'Antitrust ha già fatto espresso parere positivo dicendo che il merger non danneggerà i consumatori. E l'unico serio oppositore dell'accordo è l'associazione dei broadcaster terrestri, che parla invece di pericoloso cartello. Se fosse davvero così pericoloso, scrive il Motley Fool, il NAB farebbe bene a favorire l'accordo: gli utenti si accorgerebbero che abbonarsi alla pay radio satellitare non conviene e tornerebbero ad ascoltare l'FM. In effetti questo lungo periodo di ponderazione è strano. Ancora qualche mese e il rischio è di non avere più niente da far fondere.

XM e Sirius, il Wisconsin dice no

Sono troppo ignorante in materia di diritto statunitense per giudicare sull'importanza della cosa, ma sulla strada della definitiva approvazione della fusione tra XM Radio e Sirius Satellite Radio da parte della FCC adesso c'è solo l'ostacolo del Wisconsin. L'avvocatura di quello Stato ha inviato alla FCC una lettera in cui si chiede ufficialmente che il regolatore blocchi l'accordo ora che l'autorità antitrust del Dipartimento di Giustizia ha dato la sua approvazione. Se non ricordo male, le avvocature degli Stati avevano avuto a che fare anche con la causa tra il DOJ e Microsoft per Windows e Internet Explorer, quindi devono avere voce in capitolo in questioni di monopolio. L'Attorney General del Wisconsin, un repubblicano, afferma che radio terrestre e radio satellitare non sono la stessa cosa e che una fusione porterebbe a una situazione di monopolio in un mercato. Per ora nessuna delle parti in gioco ha fatto commenti su questa richiesta, che forse non influenzerà in alcun modo sulle decisioni della FCC.
Intanto dal Canada arriva la notizia secondo cui le filiali canadesi dei due operatori continueranno a farsi concorrenza sul piano commerciale anche dopo l'eventuale fusione, almeno in un primo tempo. Questo articolo del Globe Mail spiega la curiosa strategia alternativa.

State wants XM-Sirius radio merger blocked
The Associated Press

MADISON — Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen wants the FCC to block a merger of the nation’s only two satellite radio companies.

The U.S. Justice Department decided earlier this month to permit Sirius Satellite Radio’s proposed $5 billion buyout of rival XM Satellite Radio Holdings. The FCC still has to sign off.
Van Hollen, a Republican, sent a letter to FCC chairman Kevin Martin and Wisconsin’s congressional delegation on Monday complaining the deal would eliminate competition in the satellite radio industry, drive up prices for services and reduce channels available to Wisconsin listeners.
“Broadcast radio is no substitute for satellite radio,” Van Hollen wrote in the letter.
Sirius wants to buy XM for about $5 billion.
Van Hollen sent a letter to antitrust regulators in the U.S. Justice Department in September making the same arguments. But the agency approved the merger on March 24 with no conditions attached.
The Justice Department said the two companies didn’t compete against each other because subscribers had to purchase equipment exclusive to either XM or Sirius and ample competition exists in other audio entertainment forms, including iPods, high-definition radio and Internet radio — a key argument the companies have used to push the merger.
The FCC has the authority to block the sale or impose conditions on pricing or program offerings.
Eleven other state attorneys general sent a letter to the FCC’s Martin in March expressing

concerns about the Justice Department’s decision and urging the FCC to address anticompetitive aspects of the merger.
FCC spokeswoman Mary Diamond declined to comment. Sirius and XM officials didn’t immediately return messages today.

Per i testi delle missive, ecco i link riportati sulla pagina Web dell'avvocatura:

Citing concerns about anti-competitive and anti-consumer effects, Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced today that he has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to utilize its role to carefully review the proposed license transfer between Sirius and XM. Sirius and XM are the only two companies in the United States that provide satellite radio service. In a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, Attorney General Van Hollen asked the Commission to take into account the broad public interest of the proposed license transfer between XM and Sirius. Van Hollen issued this letter to the FCC after the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it would not attempt to block the Sirius-XM merger, nor order divestitures, despite the fact that the merger would eliminate all competition in the satellite radio industry.In September, 2007, Van Hollen wrote a letter to Thomas O. Barnett, the Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust for the United States Department of Justice to block the merger between XM and Sirius."The FCC's standard for reviewing a license transfer is broader than the United States Department of Justice's merger review, and I think that this transfer should raise several red flags for the FCC," Attorney General Van Hollen said. "The Sirius-XM deal is anti-competitive and anti-consumer."
A copy of Attorney General Van Hollen's letter to FCC Chairman Martin can be found by clicking www.doj.state.wi.us/news/files/XM-Sirius.pdf.
A copy of Attorney General Van Hollen's letter to Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Barnett is available at http://www.doj.state.wi.us/news/files/Sirius.pdf.

XM e Sirius, la FCC non decide ancora

Niente da fare, è improbabile che la FCC americana decida sul merger XM-Sirius prima della fine di marzo. Lo ha dichiarato l'altro ieri il commissario Kevin Martin, affermando anche di aver chiesto al suo staff di raccogliere la documentazione necessaria per la successiva decisione. "Prima lasceremo decidere al Dipartimento di Giustizia, poi semmai vedremo di accelerare i tempi."
E' più di un anno che le due aziende attendono il parere delle autorità su una proposta di fusione fatta nel febbraio del 2007. Ora la stessa proposta è stata prolungata fino al primo maggio. Entrambi i titoli hanno reagito positivamente alla notizia, con un rialzo in borsa.

FCC's Martin Unsure XM-Sirius Decision Will Be Soon

March 20 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin asked his staff to start drafting documents on the proposed combination of XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and said a decision may not come this quarter. The stocks rose.
Martin said he expected the FCC to rule after the U.S. Justice Department makes its decision. He commented on XM and Sirius, the only two pay-radio broadcasters in the U.S., at a press conference today in Washington.
"I'm not sure we'll make it by the end of the first quarter any longer,'' Martin said. "I've got the staff drafting various options. I haven't figured out what I think we should do on it yet.''
Sirius proposed acquiring its larger rival XM in February 2007 in an all-stock deal valued at $4.22 billion in order to cut costs and reach profitability sooner. Sirius Chief Executive Officer Mel Karmazin said last week he was optimistic the transaction would be approved. Last month XM and Sirius extended the merger agreement until May 1.
The FCC in most cases rules after the Justice Department decides whether a proposed merger is anti-competitive.
"I still think the commission will act on it after the Department of Justice acts,'' Martin said. "If there's a need for us to go forward, then we'll go forward quickly after that.''
Sirius and XM both rose in Nasdaq trading after regular market hours. Sirius gained 6.9 percent to $3.10 after rising 11 cents to $2.90 at 4 p.m. New York time. XM gained 7.3 percent to $12.82 after increasing 72 cents to $11.94 in regular trading.

Xm e Sirius, verso l'ok della FCC alla fusione?

La FCC americana sembrerebbe orientata a dare il suo assenso alla proposta di merger tra Xm e Sirius, i due operatori radiosatellitari USA. Prima di esprimere il suo parere l'authority, com'è consuetudine, dà tuttavia la parola al pubblico, fissando al 9 luglio il limite entro il quale far pervenire i pareri sulla questione. La decisione finale dovrebbe arrivare entro 180 giorni, cioè a dicembre.

Consumers invited to sound off on $4.7 billion deal to unite XM and Sirius

The Federal Communications Commission issued a notice asking for members of the public to voice their opinions on the merits of combining the nation's two satellite radio broadcasters.
The notice marks the FCC's acceptance of the two companies’ applications to merge. The combined assets of the two media players were valued at approximately $4.7 million when the deal was first announced last February.
The FCC now has less than 180 days to decide whether to approve the proposed merger, placing the deadline sometime in December of this year. The Department of Justice must also add its approval for the deal to proceed. The DOJ is charged with assessing whether the combination of the only two companies broadcasting audio programming via satellite within the United States would constitute an illegal monopoly.
The two original satellite broadcast licenses granted to XM and Sirius by the FCC 10 years ago expressly stipulated that no single licensee would be "permitted to acquire control" of both licenses. However, proponents of the merger have argued that the preponderance of alternative audio devices -- from iPods to music-playing mobile phones -- has substantially altered the marketplace, ensuring that consumers will continue to enjoy a wide variety of competitive offerings.