AirAmerica will no longer be on Sirius

[rogerkirk]

Hakim Madjid writes:

>Larry Weil Writes:
>>AirAmerica has entered a deal which makes XM the "Official 
>>satellite radio station of AirAmerica".  As a result, AA 
>>will no longer be on Sirius when their contract expires 
>>on June 12. <snip>
>>In my opinion, this is a boneheaded move by AA.  <snip> It is 
>>just the type of monopolistc move that many of the listeners 
>>to AA would be opposed to.

>
>Nothing boneheaded or 'monopolistic' about it, IMHO. Just the free
>enterprise system at work. No doubt AA management is looking at the
>still much larger XM subscriber base, and the fact that XM will carry
>the full AA line up.

This points up the real handicap that Satellite Radio labors under:
Each station has a different radio.  As long as they continue that,
IMHO they won't get the traction they need.  Probably end up being 
another VHS/Betamax contest where only one format wins.  It also
discourages others from enetering the field.  A radio that received
both XM & Sirius (as well as other future services) would help push
the format forward.  Of course, I might as well wish for world peace
while I'm at it.  It will be interesting to see what the "free market" does with this in the next 10 years.  WI-MAX just might make it obsolete.