# Satellite Radio? What's the deal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 23, 2001, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710 "2001-08-23T13:11:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/1 "2001-08-23T13:11:13Z")
So I was reading a recent chat by the Washington Post’s radio columnist and he’s going on about XM Satellite Radio. It appears to be a alternative to conventional broadcast radio that features more choices and different focuses using signals broadcast from, obviously, satellites. I’d need a new car stereo system that’s available from a local consumer electronics store which shall remain nameless here. So can anyone bring me up to speed on this? Anyone else on the bandwagon here? ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/2 "2001-08-23T13:38:49Z")
2 competing systems: [li][XM Satellite Radio](http://www.xmradio.com/home_html.html) $9.99/month[/li][li][Sirius Satellite Radio](http://www.siriusradio.com/nonflash_site/default.htm) $12.95/month[/li] The premise is, launch a satellite into geosynchronous orbit, broadcast many high-quality commercial-free channels, and charge a monthly fee for access. Then get high-end carmakers (like Cadillac) to offer AM/FM/XM radios as an option in their models. Both companies have finished the hard part, launching the satellites (XM gets bonus points for calling their two “Rock” and “Roll”). They both plan to start service later this year. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/3 "2001-08-23T16:30:49Z")
The services would seem to be ideal for travellers in the wide-open spaces of the USA. However, I’ve seen opinions that the satellite services would not include information from individual communities–everything from local weather to school closings and traffic reports. This would seem to be a strike against it. The broadcast standards used are apparently incompatible with those of the rest of the world, possibly including the USA’s neighbours. I’m not aware that satellite radio has been licensed in Canada though. I wouldn’t be surprised to see US satellite radio receivers popping up in southern Canada; I don’t know how far the broadcast footprint of the satellites extend though. A similar situation holds with US terrestrial digital radio, where a broadcast standard has not been chosen, in spite of the fact that _every other country except Japan_ has chosen the European “Eureka-147” standard. ---
**Author:** ![THespos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@THespos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/THespos)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/4 "2001-08-23T17:00:33Z")
BTW, this is not the first incarnation of this idea. Cellular radio, which was first conceptualized in the early 90s, was a total flop because of lack of consumer demand. Who knows whether XM radio will be commercially successful, though, without consumer trials? So much has changed on the radio landscape in the past 10 years… There’s a trend toward radio stations moving to formats that cater only to huge, mass market audiences. Thus, it’s impossible to find a decent AOR station in New York City, which is quite simply a crime. If satellite radio can micro-segment, which is to say they put up enough niche formats to please everyone, it may be successful. And the notion of nationwide or worldwide broadcasts without network programming (e.g. - King Biscuit Flower Hour, Rockline, etc.) is intriguing. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/5 "2001-08-23T17:47:35Z")
Well, here’s a quote from Frank Ahrens of the Post about the formats on XM: > [@](#): > > _From Frank Ahrens chat on [washingtonpost.com](http://washingtonpost.com)_ > Speaking of XM, here are some of the formats they’ll have, which I picked up last friday: > – Six channels of “Decades,” '40s, '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s. These were the least impressive channels. XM is trying very hard to not sound like radio you hear today; these sounded just like it: noisy, high-traffic, cheesey-sounding deejays. These channels are a great idea in theory–especially the '40s and '50s channels–but they need some tuning. > – Five country channels, including the terrific-sounding “Hank’s Place,” which uses all sorts of ear candy (change going into the jukebox, bar sounds, etc.) to create a nice aural landscape on which they play Hank Williams, etc. > – 15 Hits channels. On “The Heart,” an all love-songs channel that men cannot biologically listen to for more than 2 minutes, there was an unbelieveable deejay who kept switching seemlessly from Spanish to English. Don’t ask me why, but it just worked. And somehow, even if you dind’t speak Spanish, you still got what he was saying. > – A Special X channel. I don’t even know how to describe this, but it could be some of the most orignial radio you’ve ever heard. Former WHFS morning man Lou Brutus, fired a couple of years ago, is the madman behind this, which sounds like a mix of Monty Python and Golden Throats. Stay tuned. > – 10 Rock channels, including The Boneyard, which is Alice Cooper style rock; the Loft, which is acoustic rock; Fred, which is classic alternative; and Unsigned, which is just what it says. > – 7 black hits/adult contemporary, etc. channels, including Soul Street, Bobby Bennett’s channel, and The Rhyme, which is classic rap. (Kurtis Blow!) > – there are four classical channels, five latin channels, four dance channels, all this in addition to the channels they’re picking up from other providers: Headline News, Bloomberg, CNBC, NASCAR, ESPN, you get the idea. So that looks pretty good by me! I’m especially hyped about the channel with ‘Lou Brutus’. He was the best morning guy WHFS ever had. And they dumped him after 18 months. That really cheesed me off. I can’t find any info on what the radios cost OR if you can still elect to get traditional broadcast radio as well. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/6 "2001-08-23T18:07:59Z")
All the radios I’ve seen that support this stuff were AM/FM/SAT or AM/FM/XM. So you can still get normal radio. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/satellite-radio-whats-the-deal/77710/7 "2001-08-23T18:13:00Z")
And that gets me there. If the gear isn’t prohibitively expensive I’ll get it. And my truck will look so COOL with that shark fin on top!