Senators Take Issue with Merger
Three senators wrote Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin about the pending merger between XM and Sirius this week, saying the deal will create a monopoly in the satellite radio market.
"Without competition, consumer harms, including diminished service at increased cost to consumers and stifling competing new technologies, are entirely predictable," stated the letter, which was signed by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.).
While the senators said "the wisest course of action" would be to reject the merger proposal, they added that conditions could mitigate any harms to consumers.
The lawmakers said current proposals that would require a combined satellite radio entity to set aside channel capacity for non-commercial and educational programming, which according to reports would amount to 4 percent of capacity, are not sufficient. They said a lease of 20 percent of satellite radio capacity to an independent entity is "necessary to create the competitive check required."
The senators also said the FCC should ensure that device manufacturers integrate HD Radio capabilities into satellite radio reception equipment. "Consumers deserve the opportunity to choose from all of the latest radio technologies, whether they listen at home, at the office or in the car," stated the letter.
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