Sirius XM Radio – Joshua Weisleder

Posted on February 18, 2016 by smwarren

1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020

James E. Meyer | Chief Executive Officer, SiriusXM

Scott Greenstein | President and Chief Content Officer, SiriusXM

Dara Altman | Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, SiriusXM

About

SiriusXM delivers quality ad-free satellite radio programing to its subscribers ever since its early inception in Washington, DC in the early 90’s. The broadcasting company transmits satellite radio services like Sirius Satellite Radio, XM Satellite Radio and Sirius XM Radio anytime and and anywhere for its subscribers in North America. Users can access the service in their car, computer, and smartphone and tablet devices. Sirius also has constructed deals with every major automaker while also providing weather and traffic updates for automobiles, trucks, boats, RVs and aircrafts. In regards to content, Sirius offers musical stations from various genres and time periods, sporting entertainment from all major professional leagues and top notch talk show programming across its hundreds of channels. SiriusXM also allows users to individualize their content by using MYSXM which lets users listen to hours of on-demand programing so they will never miss a beat. In regards to revenue, SiriusXM is the biggest in the market and recently reached 30 million subscribers during its first quarter of 2016(1). The American based company also has a Canadian subsidiary called SiriusXM Canada, which has a user base of 2 million users.

New Programming

This past year, SiriusXM has added more quality programs to its already impressive collection of stations. Some of their new content includes SiriusXM NHL Network Radio, SiriusXM Comedy Greats, FOX News Headlines 24/7, Velvet (a vocalist curated station for the likes of John Legend and Adele), SiriusXM Fly (Hip/Hop and RnB from the 90’s and early 2000’s) and KIDZBOP Radio(2).

SiriusXM also schedules in limited time channels throughout the year to test out potential ratings or to celebrate particular events or musical artists. In anticipation for the acclaimed music festival, Sirius launched Coachella Radio on April 11 to feature music by artist that are scheduled to perform(3). Last January, recently after his death, Sirius added a commemorative David Bowie station on channel 30 to celebrate his legendary career(4). As well, with the recent passing of Prince, they created a station in his honor on channel 50(5).

This past march, SiriusXM provided all users access to every second of every game of the 2016 NCAA March Madness on their satellite radios and internet connected devices. They provided extensive coverage for both mens and women’s basketball with insight analysis from Mike Krzyzewski, Bobby Cremins, Tom Brennan, Steve Lappas and Mateen Cleaves(6). In addition, at the beginning of April, SiriusXM expanded its broadcasting coverage for Golfs biggest event, The Masters. There programing included commentary and hours of live play-by-play coverage from Augusta National(7). As well, Sirius will broadcast all the NBA and NHL playoff action this postseason while also providing MLB and NFL regular season and playoff games throughout the rest of 2016 and beyond.

Finances

Currently, Sirius XM Holdings Inc. has a share price of $3.96 on NASDAQ(8)

In 2015, the company recorded its highest revenue at $4.6 billion while having their Net Income reach $510 million(9). Their Net Subscriber base grew by 2.3 million in the previous year, which helped them propel to 30.1 total users in 2016. In addition, their EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization(10)) surged 13% to an all time high for the company by reaching $1.66 Billion at the end of 2015 which eclipsed its 2014 mark of $1.47 Billion. For 2016, the company projects a 1.4 million net subscriber increase, $4.9 Billion rise in revenue, an EDBITDA of roughly $1.78 Billion and a Free Cash flow of around $1.4 billion. In addition, highly regarded financial analysis and TV personality for Mad Money, Jim Cramer, publicly stated earlier in April that: “When you see a lot of cars being sold — and we have a remarkable number of cars being sold — you want to own Sirius(11).” With SiriusXM having market control of satellite radios with the main automobile manufactures, its safe to say that SiriusXM will continue to be profitable.

Howard Stern

The king of SiriusXM’s programing is unquestionably Howard Stern. He has two stations on the service, Howard 100 and Howard 101, attracts millions of listeners and has generated huge earning for the company. As the highest paid radio broadcaster in the country, there was speculation if Stern would leave SiriusXM to purse a new distribution medium like Apple Music or Netflix(12). However, he decided to renew his contract with SiriusXM last November to give him a 5 year $90 Million per year deal, which is an annual increase from his previous $80 million yearly salary. By locking him up, SiriusXM can ensure that there biggest star is happy and still an integral part of their growing business(13).

Broadcasting Partners

Despite having several fantastic musical stations, SiriusXM has established great partnerships with several sports, news and talk programming corporations. Some of their partners are BBC, Bloomberg Radio, CNBC, CNN, the Dave Ramsey Show, ESPN, NPR, Playboy, Radio Disney, and the Weather Network(14). By having a strong group of media corporations available for users within the Sirius ecosystem, it gives users tons of options to recieve quality news and talk.

Automobile Partnerships

With a major source of listenership generated from car owners, SiriusXM has partnered with almost every major car manufacture in the market. They have existing deals with Acura, Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, Harley Davidson, Honda, Jeep, Kia, Lexus, Toyota, and many more manufacturers(15). By having SiriusXM accessible with both American and non-American automobiles and in both luxuries and more affordable cars, the company is allowing all drivers the opportunity to subscribe to their service and its setting themselves up to be the go to place for in car audio entertainment in North America.

Closing Statements

SiriusXM provides a service unmatched in the industry. Despite heavy competition in the streaming market, SiriusXM is the only provider of ad-free satellite radio with a multitude of stations to entertain any kind of listener. From your favorite pop songs on Hits 1 to breaking news on CNN, you have 100’s of channels to choose from. After following another successful fiscal year, locking up their biggest entertainment asset in Howard Stern and continuously locking down automobile partnerships, theres nothing slowing down the satellite radio giant.

Sources

Billboard – April 23rd, 2016
SiriusXM: Channel Update – April 23rd, 2016
SiriusXM: Investor Update – April 22nd, 2016
SiriusXM Blog: David Bowie – April 24th, 2016
SiriusXM Blog: Prince – April 24th, 2016
SiriusXM: Investor Update Golf – April 22nd, 2016
Marketwatch – April 23rd, 2016
SiriusXM Investor Update – April 22nd, 2016
SiriusXM 2015 Financial Report – April 15, 2016
Investopedia – April 24th, 2016
The Street – April 22nd, 2016
TechTimes – April 22nd, 2016
Today – April 23rd, 2016
SiriusXM Partners – April 24th, 2016
SiriusXM Automobile Partners – April 24th, 2016

Sirius XM #1

Posted on December 2, 2015 by Sydney Shulman

By Sydney Shulman

Sirius XM
1221 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020

James E Meyer
Chief Executive Officer (17)

Dara Altman
Executive Vice President &Chief Administrative Officer (16)

Scott Greenstein President & Cheif Content officer

Scott Greenstein President & Chief Content officer (15)

About

Sirius XM is a company that brings you all your favorite radio programs anywhere and anytime. That includes 3,717,792 square miles of coast-to-coast coverage(1), and your favorite stations will continue to play even 200 miles off shore. It is the largest radio broadcaster measured by revenue and has 29 million subscribers. The radio can be accessed on your computer, in your car, at home, in your office, and on your smartphone or tablet. Sirius XM has arrangements with every major automaker for the installation of Sirius XM products. It also provides traffic and weather reports to cars, RVs, trucks, boats and aircrafts. Sirius XM is one of the largest ad-free audio entertainment companies and is among the largest subscription media companies in the United States. It offers a large variety of stations spanning virtually all genres and interests. This company offers a multitude of packages to accommodate all of their listeners. Customers can also personalize their channels by using MySXM, and listen to thousands of hours of programming on demand so that they never miss their favorite programs. Sirius XM is not only limited to the U.S., it also holds a minority interest in Sirius XM Canada. This minority interest has over 2 million subscribers. In short, this company provides a multitude of ad-free radio stations on various platforms for a diverse audience.

Entertainment

SiriusXM is always making new stations to accommodate their diverse subscribers. Tom Petty is set to launch his own station with SiriusXM. It will feature his music, covers of some of his most popular hits, unreleased studio and live tracks, and even full live concerts(2). Andy Cohen will also be launching his new show, Radio Andy(3). The show will be comprised of interviews with some of the biggest celebrities.

Andy Cohen (14)

With Basketball season quickly approaching, SiriusXM is offering subscribers nationwide coverage of the NBA season. This will include live play by plays of every games from the beginning of the season to the finals, and daily in depth talk and analysis of the games(19). Also, a new weekly show called, year one, hosted by two rookies, Stanley Johnson from the Pistons and Frank Kaminsky from the Hornets, will give listeners insight into the life of a first year NBA player(4).

NBA Radio (13)

SiriusXM will be gaining a lot of new shows but they may be losing one of their most successful ones. A SiriusXM veteran, Howard Stern, is in talks of renewing his contract with the satellite radio company but his return is not definite. The holdup has been due to a $20 million pay cut(5). Stern has been coy about this deal and only has good things to say about the company.

Howard Stern (12)

Always looking for new and unique programs, SiriusXM will be adding a “youtube country spotlight” to its weekly on the horizon show(6). This segment will be showcasing new music that’s gaining popularity on youtube. showcasing musicians popular on the internet is just another way that SiriusXM is keeping up with new trends.

SiriusXM is constantly evolving with their programming in order to fit the interests of all 29 million subscribers.

Finances

The third quarterly earnings have come in for SiriusXM and they have proven that the satellite company just keeps doing better and better as the years go on.Their net earnings this quarter were $167 million compared to $136 million in their third quarter of 2014(7) They reported an earnings per share of $.03 and a consolidated revenue of $1.17 billion, higher than the estimated $1.15 billion. Shares have gone up with a gain of $.012% after buying and selling at $4.11 with a volume of 11.20 million shares(8). Now sitting at $4.16, it has increased 1.2% since its previous close. Since joining with XM, they have doubled their shares outstanding(9). Jim Cramer, host of the show Mad Money, advised viewers to hold on to SiriusXM because of their prominence in automobiles, and their sturdy business model. 75% of new cars come with a satellite radio which gives SiriusXM the opportunity to grow even bigger with the years to come. With an all time high of 29 million subscribers, it is no surprise that this quarters earnings was one of the most successful in the history of the company.

Influence

SiriusXM has comprised their own list of the best songs and artists of 2015. The list was made by members of the SiriusXM music curation team and driven by subscriber feedback (10). Some artists on the list are; Adele, Taylor Swift, and Calvin Harris. While some of the best songs recognized by SiriusXM are; Hello and Cheerleader. By recognizing the best artists and songs of 2015, SiriusXM displays their dedication to bringing their customers the best entertainment out there. They ask the public what they like and want and then they make sure to make it available to them.

Future Projects

Sirius XM has paired up with Audi to showcase a new way in dealing with car accidents. Coming in 2017, the Audi Q7 SUV, will feature the new SiriusXM emergency service with unique human touch. This innovative service will feature; Automated 911 calling immediately after the deployment of an airbag, a two agent model where one operator stays on the phone and a second contacts first responders, and while waiting for emergency vehicle, the system continues to monitor the status and location of the vehicle(11). Another feature of this new system is that it will alert the police if the car is stolen, while simultaneously tracking it. It will also request roadside assistance and allow drivers to lock their car remotely using their smartphone. This new feature will soon be added to all new Audi cars. Now not only can you listen to your favorite stations but also ensure immediate action in case of an emergency.

Audi Q7 2017 (18)

Closing Statements

SiriusXM is a company that will continue to grow bigger and bigger as years go on. The dedication that this company has to bringing their audiences great content keeps them at the top of their game. As shown in their quarterly earnings this year. This innovative company is always looking for new ways to further their brand and stay relevant.

Sources

1) SiriusXM. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

2)Robinson, Will. November 17, 2015. Tom Petty Gets His Own SiriusXM Channel. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

3)Hinzmann, Dennis. October 23, 2015. Andy Cohen Launches SiriusXM Channel. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

4)Stanley Johnson and Frank Kaminsky to Be Featured Hosts on SiriusXM NBA Radio’s “Year One“. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

5)Geddes, James. November 17, 2015. Tech Times. “Howard Stern Will Renew His Contract And Return To SiriusXM If It Meets Just One Demand.” Retrieved December 2, 2015.

6)Roland, Tom. November 24, 2015. Billboard. “Nashville Notes: Joey + Rory to Release New Album; SiriusXM Taps YouTube to Find Talent | Billboard.” Retrieved December 2, 2015.

7)Sirius XM. Sirius XM Holdings inc- Retrieved December 2, 2015.

8)Watson, Steve. November 27, 2015.WSNews4Investors. On the Move Services Stock Trend. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

9)Munarriz, Rick. November 23, 2015.The Motley Fool. — The Can Sirius XM Radio Build on Its 8-Year High? Retrieved Dec 2, 2015.

10)”SiriusXM Names Artists and Songs of 2015.” — NEW YORK, Nov. 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ —. Pr Newswire, Retrieved December 2, 2015.

11)Gareffa, Peter. November 25, 2015.Edmunds. 2017 Audi Q7 To Debut Sirius/XM Emergency Services With Human Touch | Edmunds.com. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

12) SiriusXM. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

13)November 19, 2015. Twitter. Year One Meets Year Two as @Double0AG Joins @iAmSJ and @TermineRadio Now. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

14)Pr Newswire. Andy Cohen to Launch His Exclusive SiriusXM Channel Radio Andy on September 14. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

15)SiriusXM. Management Bios. December 2, 2015.

16)SiriusXM. Management Bios. December 2, 2015.

17)SiriusXM. Management Bios. December 2, 2015.

18)June 24, 2015. 2016 2017 Car Models 2017 Audi Q7 Release Date Interior Price Comments. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

19)November 23, 2015. MarketWatch.SiriusXM Offers Extensive Coverage of 2015-16 NBA Season. Retrieved December 2, 2015.

Sirius XM Radio

Posted on April 17, 2015 by Ryan Luckman

by RYAN LUCKMAN

Headquarters

1221 Avenue of the Americas

New York City, New York, U.S.

Key Executives

James E. Meyer- CEO

Scott Greenstein- President & CCO

History

SiriusXM was originally two separate companies, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio. Sirius Satellite Radio was founded in 1990 by Martine Rothblatt, David Margolese, and Robert Briskman. XM Satellite Radio was founded in 1988 by Gary Parsons and Hugh Panero. Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio merged in 2008, to become SiriusXM Radio. They were the United States’ only two satellite radio services. The merger was being questioned for years because many people thought that it would make it a monopoly. To this date, that has been proven wrong, because it is not a monopoly and terrestrial radio is still doing fine.

About

SiriusXM is a subscription-based radio service, which currently has 27.3 million subscribers (1). SiriusXM is commercial-free, and creates and broadcasts over 175 channels. These channels range from live sports, entertainment, talk and news shows, to any genre of music imaginable (2). The company also has SiriusXM Traffic and NavWeather, along with other options to provide details on traffic and weather. SiriusXM can be listened to in a car, plane, or even on a boat, as well as on a smartphone and tablet. Click here to find out the vehicle availability of SiriusXM. SiriusXM likes to say of their service that “It’s wherever you are,” and, “It’s wherever you go.” SiriusXM’s main competitors are Clear Channel Communications, Cumulus Media, and WestwoodOne (3). These companies are competitors because of their involvement in radio, except they are terrestrial radio companies, not satellite.

Financials

SiriusXM is a publicly traded company on the Nasdaq. Its past 52-week range is 2.98-4.04 (4). SiriusXM repurchased 739 million shares in 2014, which returned $2.5 billion to the stockholders. The company also returned to the number one shorted Nasdaq stock (5). SiriusXM announced that they will be releasing the First Quarter results of 2015 on April 28th. As for 2014, their yearly revenue rose 10% to $4.18 billion. Their net income rose to $493 million, which was an increase of 31% from its net income of $377 million in 2013. Its fourth quarter net income was $143 million, compared to $65 million in the fourth quarter of 2013. These increases are staggering, but might come from the large amount of total new subscribers that SiriusXM received, 1,751,777, which completely exceeded their expectations of 1,250,000 (6).

Live Broadcasting

Recently, SiriusXM seems to have been attempting to make a huge splash with live broadcasting. The company has been and will continue to broadcast live sports and music festivals. In March, they announced that they would be offering live coverage of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Division I Championship (7). In April they announcedthat SiriusXM would be covering the 2015 NBA playoffs. With this coverage, they will include daily programming of the SiriusXM NBA Radio (8). Also in April, SiriusXM Canada announced that they will have live coverage of every single NHL Playoff game. To broadcast the NHL playoffs, they will be using SiriusXM NHL Network Radio, SiriusXM’s main station for hockey (9). In March, SiriusXM announced that they would be broadcasting live coverage from the 2015 PGA Masters. With this, they had a total of 24 hours of live coverage spread throughout the four day tournament, plus 80 hours of never before heard audio from the Augusta National archives (10).

In March, SiriusXM had a live coverage of DJ sets from Ultra Music Festival (11). This was major because they even made a temporary station solely for this purpose, titled UMF Radio. On this station, they had the live DJ sets as well as interviews. Also, for the first time ever, Coachella, the two weekend music and arts festival in Indio, California, was broadcasted live and exclusively on SiriusXM Radio. It was broadcasted over a variety of stations, some of which are BPM and Electric Area (12).

Recent News

SiriusXM just concluded their 2015 MLB Spring Training Tour. The hosts were Mike Ferrin, Casey Stern, former General Managers Jim Bowden, Jim Duquette, and Steve Phillips, as well as World Series Champion Todd Holandsworth (13). SiriusXM does this tour yearly to provide the most in-depth coverage of the MLB Spring Training available on any radio format. Also, SiriusXM is the only radio broadcaster that covers every game live, play-by-play for every single team in the league throughout the season.

SiriusXM announced in April 2015 that its subsidiary, Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services, made a deal with Nissan. The services that they will offer are for convenience, safety and security (14). Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services are in nine different car manufacturers, including Nissan. On the Nissan models, there will be three different packages, the NissanConnect Services, the NissanConnect Services Premium, and the NissanConnect Services Premium Plus (14). Also in the vehicle industry, Jaguar and Land Rover announced that they will use Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services in a way where it can connect to the vehicle’s already made infotainment systems to provide call center support for safety and security reasons (15). SiriusXM and Jaguar and Land Rover have all been working together for over ten years now, so it is a good sign that they are beginning to use SiriusXM for more reasons other than just entertainment. SiriusXM is clearly trying to expand their horizons in the vehicle industry, so that they are not just a radio service.

In March, it was announced that comedians Jeff Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy will launch their own channel exclusively with SiriusXM. The two comedians will produce the channel and have live comedy shows that can only be heard on their channel with SiriusXM, and nowhere else (16). Another new channel that was announced in March will be executive produced by Andy Cohen, the talk show host of “Watch What Happens Live.” All that is known is that he will personally select what is spoken about on the show when the time comes (17).

Overall

SiriusXM had a great year in 2014, which can be proven by the incredible amount of new subscribers and also by the revenue and net income comparisons to 2013. Hopefully these ecstatic numbers continue and SiriusXM continues to be a dominant force in the radio industry in the years to come.

Sources

1- Corporate Overview, SiriusXM Radio Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

2- SiriusXM, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

3- Competitors, Yahoo Finance, Retrieved 17 April 2015

4- SiriusXM Stock, Yahoo Finance, Retrieved 17 April 2015

5- Shorted Nasdaq Stock, 24/7 Wall Street, Retrieved 17 April 2015

6- Investor Relations, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

7- Men’s Basketball, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

8- NBA Playoffs, Yahoo Finance, Retrieved 17 April 2015

9- NHL Playoffs, Yahoo Finance, Retrieved 17 April 2015

10- PGA Masters, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

11- UMF Radio, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

12- Coachella, SiriusXM Electric Area Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

13- MLB Spring Training, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

14- Nissan, SiriusXM Website, Retrieved 17 April 2015

15- Jaguar and Land Rover, SiriusXM Website, 17 April 2015

16- Jeff Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy, SiriusXM Website, 17 April 2015

17- Andy Cohen, SiriusXM Website, 17 April 2015

Sirius XM Radio

Posted on October 5, 2014 by areeves

by Allie Reeves

[1] SiriusXM Logo

The Sirius Story:

Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is a satellite radio service that offers commercial-free streaming on over 175 channels in the United States and Canada. These channels are comprised of every type of radio – music, news, sports, talk, and more [2]. It is currently the largest radio broadcaster and caters to about 26.7 million subscribers [3].

[30] SiriusXM Programming

Currently, the most popular way for subscribers to enjoy SiriusXM Radio is in the comfort of their cars. SiriusXM has arrangements with over forty automakers for installation of their services directly into the vehicle [3]. However, as of recent, SiriusXM has become available to stream directly online in your home or office, as well as an app that can be accessed on Smartphones and Tablets.

SiriusXM currently offers three different packages: Sirius Select, Sirius All Access, and Sirius Mostly Music. The packages can be bought on a monthly or annual basis and range in price from $9.99 to $199 [4].

[4] Most Popular Packages for SiriusXM Customers

The Sirius Team:

[6] Scott Greenstein, President & Chief Content Officer

[5] James E. Meyer, CEO

[7] Patrick L. Donnelly, Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Finances:

[31] SiriusXM finances as of December 1, 2014

SiriusXM recently released their 2014 Third Quarter Results, which revealed a 10% increase in revenue since this time last year, putting the company at a record high of $1.1 billion. This is higher than analysts originally anticipated for the company, as they put the company’s assumed revenue at $1.04 billion. The company also increased its subscriber count by 1.2 million [8].

Interest in shares of SiriusXM increased rapidly during the month of November. As of November 14^th, there has been an increase of 2.8% since October 31^st up to 247, 283,696. The company is now up to a $3.75 price on their stock [32].

Competitors:

[11] Apple Inc. Logo

SiriusXM’s current competitors are Apple and iHeartMedia, as well as regular terrestrial radio. Pandora and Spotify have also been named as competitors, but in a recent interview with James Meyer, CEO of SiriusXM, the two services were ruled out.

[12] iHeartMedia Logo

Meyer explained these companies are streaming services, which he doesn’t view as competition, but as its own distinct technology. Meyer also stated that out of them all, terrestrial radio is their primary competition, with 220 million people that use it everyday [9].

However, with Apple’s new CarPlay, that might not be the case for much longer. CarPlay gives drivers access to all of their music, podcasts, and audiobooks with the touch of a button, and major auto companies like Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and Ferrari are already on board. The venture is still in its early stages, but since SiriusXM is primarily used by vehicle subscribers, CarPlay could end up being a serious competitor [10].

[13] Apple CarPlay

The Sirius Edge:

What sets SiriusXM apart from its competitors at Apple, and iHeartMedia is the company’s original content that can only be accessed through subscriptions to SiriusXM.

[15] The Howard Stern Show, one of the most popular talk shows on SiriusXM

Some of the most popular original content shows include The Howard Stern Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and NFL Radio, although many more are available [3]. This original content helps keep subscribers tuning in, and keeps SiriusXM’s churn rate at an impressive 1.9%. It also helps the company keep their acquisition costs low, which has recently become problematic for companies like Pandora [14].

[17] SiriusXM Town Hall Event in the Fishbowl

SiriusXM is also known for their “Town Hall” Series. These intimate gatherings take place in the SiriusXM fishbowl, a private listening studio, where entertainers sit down with a live studio audience comprised of about 30 SiriusXM subscribers who have won an invitation to the event [16].

[19] Taylor Swift at a Town Hall Event for SiriusXM

Recently, SiriusXM was able to snag Taylor Swift for a Town Hall Event. Subscribers had the chance to ask her questions and listen to songs off of her newest album, 1989. This event comes after Swift’s recent decision to pull her music off of Spotify, giving even more leverage to SiriusXM [18].

The Today Show for SiriusXM:

This past year, SiriusXM announced a major deal with NBC, in which simulcasts of the hit NBC show, The Today Show, would be broadcasted on the satellite radio service. The format of bringing a morning show to radio has been done before, unsuccessfully. However, what makes this different is that SiriusXM will not be airing segments of the popular morning show, they will be airing the program identically as it airs on television [20].

[24] The Today Show

This move was a strategic boost for both companies. The show airs during popular morning drive time, when radio listening is at its highest. The deal will allow NBC to access SiriusXM’s 26 million listeners, and SiriusXM hopes to draw in more subscribers that are already fans of the show.

[21]

Suing Sirius:

SiriusXM has come under fire in the past year over use of music recorded before 1972. More recently, individual bands have started going after the company, claiming that they deserve compensation. Although songs recorded before February 15^th, 1972 are not covered by federal copyright law, some artists and labels have been seeking protection under individual state laws – and the courts have been agreeing. As of November 17^th, the 1960s rock band, The Turtles, has had two victories against the satellite radio company [22].

[25] Rock Band The Turtles in the 1960s

The court ruled that music recorded before 1972 still has a public performance right and that digital services cannot use it without permission or compensation. SiriusXM has requested to dismiss the lawsuit, but it has been rejected. The judge ruled that SiriusXM has until December 5^th to show any factual issues that would be cause for a trial. If none are found, she will rule in favor of the band, and “assess damages” [23].

What’s Next:

[28] Joel Osteen

SiriusXM recently announced that Golf Hall of Fame member Sir Nick Faldo will receive his own show, where he will talk golf and get to know golf enthusiasts, while they get a chance to know him [26]. SiriusXM also launched a new pop channel, Venus, as well as adding some of their popular internet only channels like Y2Kountry and Utopia to their satellite lineup. Joel Osteen Radio will also be coming to SiriusXM, a station rooted in the power of “positive thinking with messages of inspiration” [27].

[33] Holiday music channels at SiriusXM

SiriusXM is currently celebrating the sounds of the holiday season with the addition of two new Holiday Music channels, Holly and Holiday Traditions. They plan to release more within the upcoming month [33].

Also effective January 2015, there will be an increase of 1.4 percentage points in the U.S. Music Royalty Fee applied to most SiriusXM audio packages, in order to fund royalty payments to the music industry [29].

Sources

1. SiriusXM’s Logo 2014, Fbnstatic.com, RT: 11/20/2014

2. What is SiriusXM?, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

3. Corporate Overview, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

4. Our Most Popular Packages, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

5. Chief Executive Officer, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

6. President & Chief Content Officer, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

7. Executive Vice President and General Counsel, SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

8. “SiriusXM Reports Third Quarter 2014 Results”, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

9. “Sirius XM CEO: I Don’t See Spotify As A Direct Competitor”, Benzinga.com, RT: 11/22/2014

10. “Is Apple’s New Toy a Sirius XM or Pandora Killer?”, Fool.com, RT: 11/22/2014

11. Apple Inc. Logo, Worldofdtcmarketing.com, RT: 11/22/2014

12. iHeartMedia Logo, Billboard, RT: 11/24/2014

13. Apple Car Play, Uncrate.com, RT: 11/24/2014

14. “Sirius XM’s Main Edge Over Competitors”, Fool.com, RT: 11/28/2014

15. The Howard Stern Show, Tuaw.com, RT: 11/22/2014

16. SiriusXM Town Hall, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

17. SiriusXM Fishbowl Event, Howstuffworks.com, RT: 11/28/2014

18. “Taylor Swift’s Exclusive 1989 “Town Hall” to Air Live on SiriusXM”, Investor.siriusxm.com, RT: 11/24/2014

19. Taylor Swift for SiriusXM, SiriusXM Blog, RT: 11/22/2014

20. “Starting in June, ‘Today’ Will Simulcast on SiriusXM”, New York Times, RT: 11/28/2014

21. Today Show Radio on SiriusXM, YouTube, RT: 11/28/2014

22. “Rock band wins again in copyright battle against Sirius XM”, The Times of India, RT: 11/28/2014

23. “New York Court Delivers Third Strike Against Sirius XM on Pre-1972 Sound Recordings”, Sound Exchange, RT: 11/28/2014

24. Today Show Logo, Momsdemandaction.org, RT: 11/28/2014

25. The Turtles, Allmusic.com, RT: 11/28/2014

26. “Sir Nick Faldo to Host SiriusXM Show”, Techsonian.com, RT: 11/28/2014

27. New Channels and Lineup Changes, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

28. Joel Osteen, Lightsource.com, RT: 11/28/2014

29. “U.S. Music Royalty Fee Effective January 5, 2015”, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/28/2014

30. SiriusXM Programming, Siriusxm.com, RT: 11/20/2014

31. SiriusXM Financials, Google, RT: 12/1/2014

32. SiriusXM Stock Information, Watchlistnews.com, RT: 12/1/2014

33. Holiday Music at SiriusXM, Siriusxm.com, RT: 12/1/2014

Sirius XM Radio

Posted on November 3, 2013 by Stephanie Bronfein

By Stephanie Bronfein

The official SiriusXM logo, courtesy of siriusxm.com [1]

SiriusXM Satellite Radio

1221 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10020

www.siriusxm.com

Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube

History [2]:

SiriusXM Radio is one of the largest radio broadcast and subscription media companies in the United States that provides original content to 25.6 million subscribers. Their commercial-free programming covers a diverse range of music, sports, talk, entertainment, traffic and weather shows, with celebrity personalities such as Howard Stern, Oprah Winfrey, The Grateful Dead, Pearl Jam and Tiesto. While the most popular way that consumers experience SiriusXM Radio is through satellite radio in their cars, it is also available for the home or office and can be streamed through SiriusXM Radio’s website or through Apple and Android mobile applications.

Key Executives [3]:

James E. Meyer – CEO

Scott Greenstein – President & CCO

Dara Altman – Executive VP & CAO

David J. Frear – Executive VP & CFO

All photos courtesy of SiriusXM Radio. For more information on the company’s executives click here.

Financial Standing:

SiriusXM Stock Change from 11/12 to 11/13, courtesy of siriusxm.com [4].

With 36 million shares to its name, SiriusXM Radio’s stock value sits at $3.68, with a 52-week high of $4.18 and a 52-week low of $2.67 [4]. Since the third quarter of 2012, the recorded revenue has increased 11% to $962 million. The adjusted EBIDTA increased 21% to a new record of $296 million and free cash flow increased 26% to $245 million [5].

Liberty Media Takeover:

Liberty Media Logo, courtesy of forbes.com [9].

SiriusXM Radio shareholders finally spoke up this August about Liberty Media Corporation gaining control of over 50% of the company, which resulted in former Chief Executive Officer Mel Karmazin leaving the company, along with a string of other directors. In 2009, when SiriusXM Radio was considering filing for bankruptcy, John Malone of Liberty Media offered a $530 million investment to get the subscription satellite radio company back on its feet. This deal allotted 40% control over the company to Malone and included a three-year grace period where Malone could not acquire a controlling interest in SiriusXM Radio’s shares [6].

In light of this period’s expiration at the end of last year, SiriusXM Radio shareholders failed to find a loophole in the investment-agreement terms to prevent Malone from buying out the company, so he did just that. What’s more, Malone didn’t allow other shareholders to vote on the deal. This is the main contention that SiriusXM Radio shareholders have against Liberty Media. Shareholders even went as far as suing the SiriusXM Radio board of directors in Aug. 2012 for not creating a strong enough defense against the Liberty Media takeover in the original investment-agreement [7].

As of the end of August, SiriusXM Radio share value has increased more than 2,160% at $3.62 since the Liberty Media investment was made, where shares were valued at as low as $0.16 [7].

Liberty Media also holds controlling shares of the Atlanta Braves, Leisure Arts, Inc., MacNeil/Lehrer Productions and TruePosition, Inc [8].

SoundExchange Sues SiriusXM:

SoundExchange Logo, courtesy of forbes.com [10].

On Aug. 16th, SoundExchange filed a lawsuit against SiriusXM Radio for $50 to $100 million in damages, claiming that the radio provider underpaid artist royalties from 2007 to 2011 [12].

SoundExchange is an independent nonprofit organization that has been designated by the Copyright Royalty Board to collect digital performance royalties from statutory license users—such as SiriusXM Radio—for the purpose of distributing those royalties to the rightful copyright owners and artists. As the only Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service in the country, it has been decided by the Copyright Royalty Board that SiriusXM Radio should pay a federal statutory royalty rate to avoid penalty of copyright infringement for the public performance of sound recordings that they do not own (via transmitting them to their subscribers). This rate is applied to the gross revenue as defined by the Copyright Royalty Board, which was settled between 6-8% for the years of 2007 to 2012 [11].

At the root of the lawsuit, which is compromised of four different counts against SiriusXM Radio, is a claim that the gross revenue has been reduced without proper authorization from the Copyright Royalty Board, causing a multi-million dollar underpayment to SoundExchange [11]. Essentially, SiriusXM Radio has been cornered for their bad accounting.

From their reported gross revenue, SiriusXM Radio excluded revenue collected from pre-1972 sound recordings, incremental revenue on SiriusXM Radio’s premier subscription package and two additional subscription packages that include both music and talk programming [12]. On top of these three counts against SiriusXM Radio is a claim that they did not pay late fees to SoundExchange on time—in part due to the fact that they didn’t know that they apparently owed SoundExchange millions of dollars—and SoundExchange expects to collect interest on these late fees [13].

While copyright law does not protect pre-1972 sound recordings, the Copyright Royalty Board requires that those who publicly perform them must separately recognize the attributed revenue generated—if SiriusXM Radio chooses to exclude this revenue from the reported gross revenue to SoundExchange, the deduction must be precise and the methodology transparent. Since SiriusXM Radio does not distinguish the revenue made from different kinds of music programming, the percentage that they attribute to the pre-1972 sound recording revenue can only be defined as an assumption, and is therefore unlawful [11].

SiriusXM Radio excluded incremental revenue that was garnered from the pricing difference between its standard package and its premier package. While the subscription satellite radio service is allowed to exclude channels that don’t include music programming—and the premier package only gives consumers additional talk/news programming—the additional channels offered in the premiere package aren’t offered for a separate charge [12]. In plain, the premier package also includes all of the programming from the standard package, meaning that it unlawfully excludes publicly performed sound recordings from its reported gross revenues [11].

In the same vein, SiriusXM Radio excluded revenue from the Family Friendly and Mostly Music packages, which were originally offered from XM Radio before the merger and contain both music and talk programming. The publicly performed sound recordings in these packages are supposed to be covered by a statutory license. Once again, SiriusXM Radio did not spell out the method by which they separately recognize revenue garnered from music and talk channels in these packages, therefore making the reduction from gross revenue unauthorized by the Copyright Royalty Board [11]. Of all the exclusions, this one makes the least sense.

At the time that this post was published (Nov. 20th, 2013), SiriusXM Radio has declined to comment on the lawsuit and no progress has been made to the public in regards to securing a jury trial date.

New Programming:

David Bowie, photo courtesy of billboard.com [14].

David Bowie’s Limited-Run Station [14]:

From October 30th through November 12th, SiriusXM Radio ran a limited-time station revolving around David Bowie’s latest album, “The Next Day,” which premiered on November 5th. As a promotional effort for the album, the station revealed five songs from an expanded version of the album. Other programming included rare demos, covers and live performances of Bowie’s.

Danny Howard, photo courtesy of billboard.com [15].

UK DJ Danny Howard Brings EDM radio show to BPM [15]:

Premiering December 5th on the BPM station, Danny Howard will join an elite group of European DJ’s to showcase what’s hot in the UK and European electronic dance music scene. With this weekly show, he hopes to break DJs and producers from his side of the pond that might not have gotten stateside exposure. Prior to accepting this stateside residency with SiriusXM Radio, Howard hosted a show on BBC Radio 1 titled, “Dance Anthems with Danny Howard.”

21st Century FOX logo, photo courtesy of 21cf.com [17].

FOX Business returns to SiriusXM Radio [16]:

Originally dropped in 2008 after Sirius Satellite Radio merged with XM Satellite Radio, FOX Business reclaims its spot next to FOX News as another 21st Century Fox radio station. With their nationally regarded collection of personalities, the stations are sure to attract a wide audience with their discussion of news, politics and current affairs. The deal is set to last through 2019.

Sources:

1. SirusXM Logo

2. SiriusXM Corporate Overview

3. SiriusXM Key Executive Bios

4. SiriusXM Stock Quote

5. SiriusXM Third Quarter Financial Results

6. Bloomberg Article on SiriusXM Investor’s Being Shortchanged by the Liberty Media Takeover

7. Billboard Article on SiriusXM Shareholder’s Position on Liberty Media Takeover

8. Liberty Media Asset List

9. Liberty Media Logo

10. SoundExchange Logo

11. SoundExchange Sues SiriusXM Radio – Filed Complaint

12. Billboard Article – SoundExchange Sues SiriusXM Radio Over Royalty Calculations

13. Billboard Article – SoundExchange Seeks Up to $100 million from SiriusXM for Underpaying Artist Royalties

14. David Bowie’s Limited-Run Station

15. Danny Howard’s UK EDM Show

16. FOX Business Returns to SiriusXM Radio

17. 21st Century Fox Logo

SiriusXM Radio

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Trevor Gill

by Trevor Gill

Courtesy of SiriusXM.com

The Basics

Website: www.SiriusXm.com

Address

221 Avenue of the Americas #36

New York, NY 10020

Phone Number: (212) 584-5100

Social Media: Twitter Facebook Instagram Youtube

What is it?

Sirius XM Radio is one of the largest subscription media companies in the United States, providing commercial free satellite radio to subscribers who pay anywhere from $14.49 to $17.99 per month (depending on the package they choose).

Courtesy of IMDB.com

Sirius XM has 23.9 million subscribers. The service offers over 140 channels with content ranging from Howard Stern talk radio, to hits from Jimmy Buffett, to NASCAR and beyond. Subscribers can access content either built into their vehicles via satellite, on Sirius XM’s website, or on mobile applications available for Apple and Android powered devices. (1)

A visual of what Sirius XM is all about, courtesy of their website.

Courtesy of SiriusXM.com

James E. Meyer, Courtesy of satelliteradioplayground.com

Key People

James E. Meyer, Chief Executive Officer

James Meyer joined Sirius XM radio in May of 2004, and after former CEO Mel Karmazin stepped down from the position, Meyer took over as CEO on December 18^th, 2012. Before becoming CEO, Meyer held the position of President of Operations and Sales. Said Meyer, “Sirius XM is a great business and I look forward to working with our talented management team to continue to deliver the best content and service to our subscribers, while enhancing value to our shareholders.” (2)

Scott Greenstein, President and Chief Content Officer

Scott Greenstein is in charge of programming and marketing for Sirius XM. Greenstein previously was a consultant to the company on contractual agreements negotiated with the National Football League. (3)

Dara Altman, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer

Altman was previously the Executive Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs for XM Satellite Radio, prior to the merger between Sirius and XM. (4)

What’s Going On Today?

Financial News

On February 5^th Sirius XM released its annual financial report from 2012. The company reported that 2012 revenue was $3.4 billion, a 13% increase from 2011 revenue, which was $3.0 billion. Another positive for Sirius XM was that Net Income for 2012 was $3.5 billion, compared to $427 million in 2011. Net Income was higher than revenue for 2012 because of a $3 billion income tax benefit, and thanks to $130 million due to a loss on extinguishment of debt.

Sirius XM was also happy to announce that it added 2 million subscribers in 2012. That is the largest amount of added subscriptions since 2007 (before Sirius and XM merged).

Sirius XM predicts that 2013 revenues will exceed $3.7 billion. Also predicted is a total net subscriber addition of 1.4 million. (5)

On the negative side for Sirius XM, on Friday April 5th its stock (SIRI), dipped below $3 for the first time since late February. The stock dropped to $2.95, the lowest price so far in 2013. However on Monday, April 8^th the stock closed at $3.04 per share, up from what was a down last week. (6)

The Competition

On April 2^nd, A new study by The NPD Group suggest that streaming music is quickly gaining ground on traditional terrestrial radio, especially with the younger demographics (ages 13-35). The report, which looks at the fourth quarter of 2012, shows that in this 13-35 demographic, 23% of music is being heard on Internet radio, while 24% is still heard on traditional AM/FM radio. The report shows that just 5% of listeners in this age group listen to music via satellite radio.

Courtesy of NPD.com

Breaking down the 23% of Internet “streaming” radio usage, Pandora leads the way, taking up 39% of users time. In second is iHeartRadio, which accounts for 11% of usage amongst ages 13 and 35 in the 4^th quarter of 2012. (7)

Courtesy of NPD.com

Apple

According to Paul Sloan of CNET.com Apple is in the works of signing deals with both Warner Music and Universal Music Group to allow Apple and iTunes to offer streaming content, similar to what Pandora offers. The new product is rumored to be called iRadio. This would add another huge source of competition for Sirius XM, especially if the Apple product is free (or cheaper than Sirius XM’s monthly rate). (8)

Courtesy of CNET.com

Current Programing

Super Bowl Coverage

Courtesy of twitter.com

Sirius XM Radio offered in-depth coverage of Superbowl 47, which included broadcasting the game in eight foreign languages, and airing Beyonce’s halftime performance live. In addition, they offered coverage all Superbowl week long with specials from SiriusXM NFL Radio, Mad Dog Radio, Maurice Jones-Drew, Jeff Foxworthy and more. Sirius XM also aired a limited-run, special New Orleans jazz Channel called “Radio New Orleans” from February 1^st – 3^rd. (9)

Town Hall Exclusive with Al Gore

Courtesy of biography.com

On Thursday, February 28^th Sirius XM’s “Town Hall” series sat down with former Vice President Al Gore to discuss his new book “The Future: Six drivers of Social Change”. The special was hosted by Ari Rabin-Havt, who hosts The Agenda on Sirius XM, and allowed for audience members to ask Gore about a wide variety of topics. (10)

New 24/7 Entertainment Weekly Channel

On March 1^st, Sirius XM announced that Entertainment Weekly would launch an all-new channel, Entertainment Weekly Radio, offering 24/7 coverage of all the latest news in the world of entertainment. The channel will offer shows hosted by Entertainment Weekly and EW.com editors, featuring news, interviews, opinions and more. (11)

New Addition to Mad Dog Radio

Courtesy of twitter.com

On March 4^th, Sirius XM announced that Adam Schein has joined its all-sports Mad Dog Radio channel. Schein will host his own show, Schein on Sports. Schein previously worked for Sirius XM in 2004. He also currently works for SportsNet New York (SNY) and the CBS Sports Network. Prior to that Schein had worked at WFAN Radio in New York, and Fox Sports Radio.

Schein graduated from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications in 1999. (12)

More Live Coverage

NCAA Final 4

Sirius XM provided an array of live broadcasts from The NCAA Final Four in Atlanta, including coverage of the National Championship game. Shows such as Inside College Basketball, Tim Brando Show, and SiriusXM’s Final Four Roundtable all provided live coverage from Atlanta, from Thursday April 4^th, to Tuesday April 9^th. (13)

The Masters

Courtesy of espn.go.com

Sirius XM will offer live hole-by-hole coverage of the 2013 Masters on the PGA TOUR Radio Channel from the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia. The Masters coverage will last the length of the tournament from Thursday April 11^th, to Sunday April 14^th. The channel will also offer a two-hour pre-Masters show before each day of the event, and Masters Review recapping each round. (14)

Sources

1. Sirius XM Corporate Website

2. James Meyer Corporate Bio

3. Seth Greenstein Corporate Bio

4. Dara Altman Corporate Bio

5. Sirius XM 2012 Report

6. This Week in Sirius XM Radio – The Motley Fool

7. NPD report on Radio Streaming Usage

8. CNET.com article by Paul Sloan

9. Sirius XM Press Release (on Superbowl coverage)

10. Sirius XM Press Release on Town Hall Event

11. Sirius XM Press Release on Entertainment Weekly Announcement