Advanced Television

XM, Sirius still hanging on for merger

March 5, 2008

XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio extended their merger agreement until May 1, agreeing not to exercise their right to terminate the deal. There had been a March 1 trigger for unwinding the proposal if it had not received an OK from the JJustice is expected to come first, but FCC chairman Kevin Martin said recently that he expected the commission to be done with its review by the end of March. The FCC has been considering the merger, which has been strongly opposed by terrestrial broadcasters, for 266 days.

The key issue has been whether or not the satellite-radio marketplace is its own separate entity – XM and Sirius are the only national license holders – or part of a larger audio marketplace that includes terrestrial radio, cable radio, Internet radio and downloads.

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