Two U.S. satellite radio services to merge

Two U.S. satellite radio services, Sirius and XM, have announced plans to merge, a move that would end their costly competition for radio personalities and subscribers but that is also sure to raise antitrust issues, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The two companies, which report close to 14 million subscribers, hoped to revolutionize the radio industry with a bevy of niche channels offering everything from fishing tips to salsa music, and media personalities like Howard Stern and Oprah Winfrey, with few commercials, said the report.

While there had been speculation of a merger, neither side had engaged in serious negotiations until December, when both companies determined it was in their best interests to complete a deal while the Bush administration was in power, the report quoted people in the negotiations as saying.

The companies said Monday that their 13 billion dollar merger -- code-named Project Big Sky by XM -- would give consumers a broader range of programming, while eliminating overlapping stations that focus on genres of music. At the same time, they said, they could cut duplicated costs in sales and marketing.

A merger would require antitrust approval from the Justice Department and would have to be considered in the public interest by the Federal Communications Commission, said the report.

Questioned last month about a possible Sirius-XM merger, the F. C.C. chairman, Kevin J. Martin, initially appeared to be skeptical, but later said that if such a deal were proposed, the agency would consider it.

Source: Xinhua