Satellite Radio’s Opening Day

A big difference in the media coverage of baseball’s opening day this year is its transmission on satellite radio over the XM network. XM signed a deal with Major League Baseball last October worth $650 million that enables the company to carry most regular and postseason games over the next several years.

For the young satellite radio industry, the baseball deal is another indication of viability. Rival Sirius Satellite Radio has a five-year, $500 million deal to bring Howard Stern on board in January 2006. Last year, Sirius also paid more than $220 million for the rights to broadcast all NFL games, adding to NBA and NHL (what’s that?) packages.

The satellite radio companies are pouring millions into their new ventures, and they are still swimming in red ink. But the new medium appears to be surging.

The New York Times reports today:

The announcement on Friday by XM Satellite Radio - the bigger of the two satellite radio companies - that it added more than 540,000 subscribers from January through March pushed the industry's customer total past five million after fewer than three and a half years of operation. Analysts call that remarkable growth for companies charging more than $100 annually for a product that has been free for 80 years. Total subscribers at XM and its competitor, Sirius Satellite Radio, will probably surpass eight million by the end of year, making satellite radio one of the fastest-growing technologies ever - faster, for example, than cellphones.

So if you want to listen to sports constantly or get your jollies from shock jocks like Howard Stern or Opie and Anthony, you’re all set. What else is happening here?

Actually, quite a lot. This is the first I’ve looked into the content available, and I’ll have to admit I’m impressed. There are many channels and a lot of variety. On XM, there are music channels of every kind, talk programs from the right and left. Sports galore. Christian music and talk. Several high octane programs. You pay more for access to the smut.

Check out the XM schedule.

There’s still the need to get the hardware, which it appears will set you back at least $150.
A big selling point for satellite radio is that is commercial-free. Your subscription of about $14 a month frees you from commercial overload.

One challenge for satellite radio is that there isn’t local programming, a problem for listeners who rely on the radio for local weather, traffic, and news. They’re making an effort to address this deficiency, but can only do so for major markets at this point.

The one thing I want to know before diving in is whether the reception is solid or spotty, particularly in bad weather. Lot’s of you are probably way ahead of me. How are you enjoying satellite radio so far?

--James Jewell