Sirius/XM should ask for some bailout money!

They begged for the merger and got it. Now what? they killed off the programming, fired people and the stock is in the tank.

Its a mess.

Howard is the only bright spot.

Well, they screwed up XM as well, many of my favorite XM channels disappeared once they merged and I still don't get Howard Stern, yeah, it's listed as channel 100/101 but my tuner goes right past them. I already paid for four years when I bought my car, so I hope I am not asked for more money.....

Sad part is if I was I probably would pay it as I can't live with only terrestrial radio any more.

I gave up on most radio once Howard left. I can't stand any stations with commercilas so only listen to NPR - or plug in the iPod. Most people I know listen on their iPods now.

I don't think that it is impossible that Howard doesn't go to podcasting.

His audience is loyal and willing to pay for his content. Imagine $4.99 a month for 20 shows. Imagine him not having to wake up at 4:00 AM anymore etc...

I had XM in my old ML500 (three of them ago) as an aftermarket option from the car audio dealer. I ripped it out and put Sirius in and was thrilled with it. This was before Howard moved over. The music was better at Sirius. Now the music is ruined on both formats. Thank you for making Sat radio sound just like terrestrial radio! I will use my iPod and CDs now. When Howard bails - I will cancel if not sooner.

I would pay for Howard's podcasts. I love Howard.

I hear you Barbie!!

I grew up with Howard, from when he was on AM....

Me too.

My Mom bought a Checy Chevette (aka a "vette" - you hear me Andrew you greaseball?) that had ONLY an AM radio. When I was 9 i was allowed to listen (it was pretty tame back then) and it was REALLY cool that you could get NYC radio in Philly. Then Howard came to town and changed everything for FM radio.

Howard IS the only bright spot on sat radio.

Howard Stern the bright spot? Howard is a big part of the problem. The millions they pay him to peddle his smut could be used to actually bring back some of the decent programming and sound quality that was XM. Howard is no "bright spot" for this XM listener.

respectfully, SMUT SELLS and Howard is proven at that.

Look at the number of subscribers Sirius had before Howard and now years after. He has mainstream reach then compare them to XM's growth. Howard is a proven power in terms of being able to convert his loyal readership into people willing to pay for content - much like people are willing to pay for smut.

Note: you don't have to get Howard on XM. In fact they charge extra for it.

Also note: you don't have to listen to Howard even if you get him. I do that with say Rush Limbaugh or Fox News. They are right wing Jesus freaks who hate America (see the "I want Obama to fail" comment from a week ago thus I don't listen to them.

I have a Sirius in the house and I am going to drop it if they raise the rate. I can get
all of what they offer other than Playboy and Stern for free on radio, iTunes.
Lynn Samuals has a 2 hour show on Sirius and frankly her show should be considered
torture by the Geneva Convention. She is on "Sirius Left".... she talks about such political
issue as : new shower curtains, the price she pays for fruit in NYC, the subway and why Obama would lose the election due to her and other Clinton supporters would vote
for John McCain. Playboy morning show says...."oh you are sooo hot" 100 times each show. The playmate hour discusses learning how to tie your shoes.
Howard is obsessed with discussing office politics...who likes who and who hate who plus
whether the unfunny comedian on the show is on smack or not. It has become hard to listen to.

Palm!!!!!

Good to see you over from AVRevForum.com and posting here.

The LA Times has been very critical of Stern for not getting the top talent as guests any more and at some levels perhaps they are right. To love the show - you need to follow the character development. Artie Lange's drug addiction, Robin's Vegan weightloss and dating, Howard's obsessions etc.. If you aren't into that - you won't like the show any more.

Well I have had sirius for 3 years and I definitely agree that I thought the merger would be a great thing for both companies. They spent a whole lot of time and energy to make the merger happen and then when it finally came to pass the changes were made without so much as a poll to see which of the similar music stations would stay and which would go.

It is a fact that I lost some great channels that I was loyal to and I'm disappointed...but the convenience over terrestrial radio and the fact that not all of us are ipod fanatics, plus Howard are still going to keep me shelling out monthly.

Great article Jerry

I am not an iPod fantatic either. I have one and use it at the gym and on airplanes. That's about it. I have the $600 attachment for my iPod in my car but have NEVER used it and this is my second lease with one.

Nearly all of the best Sirius channels are either GONE or destroyed with XM programing.

How will Sirius make their two big debt payments this year? Raising the rates on customers like you and I? Not a good plan.

Overall, Internet Radio is better and the best way to get that to your car is a Podcast thus the comment in the article. I think we are a long way from a National wireless network that works like sat does but I wouldn't put it past Obama. When he talks about rebuilding America's infrastructure - he is likely thinking Internet and wireless.