XM & Sirius: What A Merger Won't Fix

From an unsigned article:

Sure, XM ... and Sirius ... would wring out plenty of cost savings as one company. But the two have yet to earn a penny of profit. Their combined losses for 2006 are expected to hit $1.7 billion. And competition is everywhere. Car salesmen are pushing new iPod jacks. More than 57 million Americans now listen to some form of Web radio each week, says radio-audience tracker Bridge Ratings, compared with 14 million subscribers for XM and Sirius combined. Broadcasters are beginning to offer high definition, or HD, radio. While consumers need to buy a special receiver to get HD, which squeezes more programming into the same frequency, the service is free.  ¶  Meanwhile, 240 million folks listen to regular radio at least once a week. And who knows what's around the corner?  Maybe a form of WiMAX will be capable of streaming Web radio to a speeding car. ...

Link:  BusinessWeek.  Maybe a form of WiMAX?  Not maybe -- it's here. 

Also see Olga Kharif's Satellite Static: The XM-Sirius Merger.  Link:  BusinessWeek.  --Dennis