What happened to the XM-Sirius merger?
Announced last February, the merger appears to have hit a snag. We sat through all of December with little hints here and there—sources say an announcement will be made later today, sources say the FCC is just crossing T’s and dotting I’s—but now we’re left wondering what’s going on.
Some attribute the delay to the merger’s complexity. Others contend that the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission, both of whose approval is required for the merger to go through, are facing resistance from some of its staffers who oppose the merger. There’s also the continued lobbying by terrestrial radio, primarily in the form of the NAB and its silly ads, that may influencing the regulatory bodies.
For the record, so long as Opie and Anthony aren’t kicked off the air, I say merge ’em. As a person living in he year 2008, I that whole “it’ll be a satellite radio monopoly” doesn’t really fly. You have an iPod. Use it.