Sirius XM Must Get Serious About Its Hardware 36 comments
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In this guest post, Scott Spiegel shares his thoughts on the state of Sirius XM (SIRI) hardware.
One of the most exciting prospects of the Sirius XM merger was that subscribers would get the incredible service that is Sirius, combined with the far superior equipment that XM had been offering for years. This has happened, but unfortunately, in the half-year since approval was finally given, all we’ve gotten from the newly merged company is ONE interoperable device. I’m not even really sure why anyone would ever need an interoperable device, seeing that anyone can get the “best of” packages from each service.
Even beyond that, it’s disappointing that over a year ago, a friend showed me a Garmin (GRMN) GPS that he’d bought that doubled as his XM receiver. It was clunky with its menu, but it worked decently. Since then, there hasn’t been any advancement. The in-dash Kenwood (KNWCF.PK) receiver I bought last week has an iPod adapter, a USB port, a DVD player, and capabilities to receive live TV. Despite all these features, one aspect is severely lacking - the Sirius operating system is awful. It won’t pause, it doesn’t save favorite artists/songs, and the navigation of channels is not the least bit user-friendly. Of course, poor software on a Kenwood receiver isn’t necessarily the company’s fault, but with all the competition for audio entertainment out there, I find it ridiculous that Sirius XM doesn’t mandate that every piece of equipment sold, have each of the previously mentioned features, plus more.
Inside the 36th and 37th floors of the McGraw-Hill building in New York (Sirius’ NYC headquarters), the offices are filled with people with a true passion for providing the best possible radio for subscribers. Most employees are underpaid and work long hours, but they do so happily because they would give anything to see it succeed. My worry is that the longer Sirius XM goes without knock-your-socks-off equipment, the less likely employees will be able to keep up with the heavy workload. What’s the point of all the sacrifice if they begin to feel that the service is no longer superior.
A soon-to-be-released iPhone application is a small step in the right direction, but it’s nowhere near the giant leap needed to lure new customers. Gear that doesn’t cut short on the coolness factor is what will entice new people to subscribe. Sirius XM should partner with innovative companies that can integrate all of the best features into future receivers. Money should be spent on research and development of this new equipment rather than on signing C-list celebrities like Bobby Flay to program their own channels.
Scott Spiegel is a freelance writer based out of Houston, you can learn more about him at Scottyspiegel.com
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mlongj wrote: "It really is not about the hardware, but rather about the content."
We have to pray SIRI survives...because I do not know what I will do without it in my car or home.
Here is your snippet from a while ago..different tune now.
Even with the merger, it will be one or more years before the combined programming of XM and Sirius can be received. In the interim, consumers have stopped or slowed their buying of satellite radio services because of the surrounding uncertainty about when and at what price a receiver will be available that can receive the programming of the merged entity. This confusion has only exacerbated an already serious decline in both companies' valuations and their shareholders are the ones being victimized.
As a consumer and shareholder, I have been asking for answers about what happened to the FCC’s interoperability mandate and the companies’ failure to comply with it. Not only have Sirius’ and XM’s executives refused to answer, the FCC has refused to address the issue of the companies’ failure to comply with its own rule or how its refusal to do so comports with its statutory obligations to protect the public’s interests in communications services.
radio in the sping. And the I-phone app. Maybe audiovox will help
siri / Xm with their dept. since they seem to also believe in the long term
for siri / Xm.
You may be right, but Seeking Alpha is wrong in who Authored this article. This article was written and posted yesterday on Siriusbuzz.com a guest author, Scott Spiegal. Your rant on Tyler is understandable if he wrote the article, but he did not.
Don't think anyone has forgotten.....also don't think it's nearly enough. Audiovox is good for SIRI/XM specific devices. The growth of this company needs to be tied into shared applications with existing and new equipment being developed in order to not pidgeon hole itself by forcing subs into purchasing user specific equipment just for SATRAD. In that way..they can grow the subscriber base much larger.
I could suggest that you could cut them both and get a satellite TV dish and get both TV & satellite radio however. I understand you will not get all the radio channels, but, times are tough, and satellite radio is still a luxury no matter how you slice, dice or try to justify it.
(I do understand how well you like satellite radio, however. It was cool for a while, I agree.)
On Feb 04 02:40 PM asm610 wrote:
> Heck of a battle here toward the 3 o clock hour. Someone seems determined
> as all get out to push down this SP....;..unfortunately for them...it's
> not really working....so far!
Hopefully third times the charm and it holds and we go from there!
On Feb 04 02:44 PM asm610 wrote:
> mogami,
>
> Hopefully third times the charm and it holds and we go from there!
There was a lot of interest all day at keeping it at .14 or lower. The volume was still light at 27M shares, but better than when it was trading at .11, mostly 15M shares/day. I like it being over .1350, but I feel it will take some good news to give buyers conviction to hold. There is a lot of small trading with small investors selling small lots, leaking the air out of any momentum. The longer we're here without news the more likely we'll go down. Any news on a good 4Q or Debt Refinancing will take these levels out quickly. Volume will be the key. Good news will have the 216M shorts buying and will not squeeze but push this stock up quickly. Its hard to call it a squeeze at these levels. Who are we kidding. We're the ones that got squeezed their just locking in profits, getting ready for their next run.......
By the same token I don't think the shorts are effecting the current price (other then to have helped it get here) I mean they are not going to stop it from going up once the important details come out and are positive. They will help the price increase when they move to cover.