Promotions

Halloween gets more and more commercialized every year, and this year is no different. Sirius XM Radio, Slacker, and other music services have programmed special stations and shows to let you get into the Halloween spirit. Take advantage of a bit of “escapism” and catch some classic scary tunes.

SIRIUS

SCREAM 113 - For a ghoulish Halloween, tune in to SIRIUS Scream 113 from Sunday, October 26 to Sunday, November 2. The channel will feature spooky songs and sound effects, Halloween stories from SIRIUS Stars and personalities (Martha Stewart, Deepak Chopra, Jay Thomas and Cousin Brucie, among them), Halloween-related interviews and features, listener comments, and more. And on October 31, Scream 113 is the place for your sound track for Halloween with 24 hours of blood curdling sound effects … Don’t say we didn’t warn you!
Slacker

Slacker is also getting into the Halloween spirit early by offering an awesome channel called Halloween Radio. Jam to tunes that will keep your Halloween party rockin’, or simply tune in to hear a great channel targeted to the October holiday.

Halloween radio on Slacker is available right now, and best of all… you can skip a song if it too darn scary!!!

[via Slacker Active]

Position - Long SIRI

SiriusBuzz sponsor TSS-Radio has been recognized by BizRate for being in the top tier of retailers for customer satisfaction. The award places TSS Radio in the company of household names such as Crutchfield and Bose.

One reason SiriusBuzz chose TSS-Radio as a site sponsor was their dedication to satellite radio and their excellent customer orientated business model. We could feel confident that a reader of SiriusBuzz would have a good experience in dealing with TSS-Radio. How good did TSS-Radio perform? See below:

If you have not yet experienced the service offered by TSS-Radio, we recommend that you give them a try. Join SiriusBuzz in congratulating TSS Radio by sharing your experiences with them in the comments section of this article. These are good guys, and in today’s economy it feels great to give an independent retail a great thumbs up!

[TSS-Radio Press Release]

[BizRate Award Winners - Including TSS-Radio]

Disclosure - TSS Radio is a sponsor of SiriusBuzz. We would have published this article regardless of our business relationship because we believe that TSS-Radio is an excellent retailer that goes above and beyond.

Over the years, Sirius and XM both have had special pricing for Family Plan (second) subscriptions. For $6.99 per month, the second subscription allows users to get satellite radio in another car, or in their home. XM had gotten the Family plan to a point where it represented between 20% and 25% of their subscriber base. Sirius had been hovering around the 13% threshold.

In the past, XM had been very aggressive in pursuing the Family Plan subscribers, and it made great sense. While the ARPU was lower, it was an easy sell, because the subscriber obviously already was in love with the concept of satellite radio. XM’s earlier push made sense because they were getting a lot of in dash OEM subscriptions, where Sirius was behind the curve in the OEM channel, and thus many Sirius subscribers had retail units which could easily be transported from car to home.

Now the Sirius brand has enough OEM channel subscribers to make marketing the Family Plan more viable, and it would appear that this is exactly what they are doing. Lately I have heard a concerted push on Family Plan subscriptions on various Sirius channels. The company is offering special pricing to existing subscribers, and structuring the deal so as to lock in both the original and second subscription for a specified length of time. At this point I would estimate that Sirius XM Radio is at 18% for the Family Plan.

Getting the blended company (Sirius XM Radio) to the 25% Family Plan threshold is important. The more often a subscriber can listen to your product, the more loyal they will become. Simply stated, 2 subscriptions at an ARPU of $10 is better than 1 at $12.95 with a revenue share attached. If Sirius XM radio were already at a 25% threshold, they would effectively have over 1,300,000 more subscribers than they currently do. That would represent over $9,000,000 more in revenue to the company that is not hindered by revenue share agreements. Yes, there will be a SAC impact, and the cheaper plan is not friendly to the ARPU metric, but it would be a benefit to churn, and the metric that matters most…the bottom line.

While everyone is anxious to see some synergies play out, and everyone wants to see wonderful promotions that put satellite radio in the news, there are still existing opportunities within the company to improve the revenue and cash flow without a huge investment. Given Mel Karmazin’s statements on getting to $400 in synergies, and getting to Positive cash flow, efforts in areas such as the Family Plan are where we will see the biggest impact. The Family Plan is not as sexy as a new wearable, or A-La-Carte programming, but it could well be these types of activities that deliver the most reward for the smallest capital investment.

I would suggest watching this line item in the future. With XM, the magic number appeared to be 25% of the base, and I would imagine that is the initial goal of the company. At over $9,000,000 per month, the Family Plan subscription is something well worth chasing.

Position - Long SIRI

XM satellite Radio started a Pass-It-On campaign today by sending out emails to subscribers to encourage them to share XM with family and friends.

If you refer someone to XM, that person can get great deals on hardware (up to 65% off), and you will receive a $20 Visa gift card for each person you refer that subscribes. The program in similar to promotions from both Sirius and XM in the past.

So, if you are an XM subscriber and know someone that should have XM, go ahead and share what you know. Refer 8 people and you have just paid for an entire year of XM.

Position - Long XM

Christmas has come and gone. Did you get what you wanted? Did you see a sparkle in their eye when they opened their present? Sirius is currently running a contest that can give you, or that someone special an unforgettable experience with one of the stars of Sirius.

The variety of choice in the prize parallels the variety on a satellite radio dial! From lunch with Gary Dell’Abte of the Howard Stern show to exclusive orchestra seating and a back stage tour at the Metropolitan Opera, to trips to Europe, there is something that will suit your fancy. The winner can choose one of 26 possible experiences! Entering is easy, so why not give it a try?

Position - Long Sirius

Christmas is coming and Sirius is on the top of many peoples wish lists. So, do your friends and family a favor and give them something they will actually use this Holiday Season. For the price of a shirt and some socks you can give your loved one a Sirius Satellite Radio along with a year’s pre-paid subscription! Ask yourself, which would you rather have?

Free Stratus4 with purchase of $49.99 pre paid subscription
Free Sporster 4 or Starmate 4 after rebate
Use coupon “sirius 15″ for 15% off all radios and accessories

From the “OOPS THAT WAS A BAD HEADLINE” Department.

In a press release issued today, the NAB announced that they would be launching new PSA’s geared towards drunk driving. However, the headline of the press release could be taken the wrong way:

“NAB To Launch Drunk Driving PSA’s At The NAB RADIO SHOW”

It would appear that the NAB does indeed care about their members. I realize that conventions are places to kick back and have a bit of fun, but someone may want to reconsider the open bar, or at least take away keys upon entrance to the event.

Seriously though, the issue of drunk driving is very important, and not really a laughing matter. What the NAB is doing is launching new Public Service Announcements featuring the likes of Jeff Foxworthy and Gwen Stefani giving messages on the subject to radio stations from around the country. Kudos to the NAB for keeping this important issue in the spotlight.

Who said that David Lee Roth would never reunite with Van Halen?

Well, Van Halen fans are about to get treated to something that has been bantered about since Roth left the band, and since Roth is no longer talking on the airwaves of CBS Radio, he has some time on his hands to jam away like it was 1984. Oh, and there is one slight change to the band. Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddies son, is on bass (no Michael Anthony).

Sirius fans have a chance to be a part of this reunion by entering a contest. Details of the Van Halen contest, as well as several other contests are available in the Sirius Buzz Forums. We have simplified the entry process for you by giving you direct links to contest entry forms on a new thread in our General Discussion Form titled Sirius Contests. So why not stop by and enter the contests, and post any other contests you are aware of. Hopefully some Sirius Buzz readers will be winners.

Position - Long Sirius

Infiniti, the luxury division of Nissan, has started their ad campaign for the 2008 QX56 model. Readers should be able to catch the ad during prime time television shows over the next month. The luxury SUV with a $52,250 starting price comes with lots of bells and whistles. Among the amenities offered is standard XM Radio and XN NavTraffic for 3 years which represents over a $600 value to consumers.

Infiniti is rolling out longer term XM subscription deals such as this in higher end vehicles such as the QX56, and beginning integration of their navigation service in other vehicles such as the G37 (DVD based system still available in this model). With XM going into the QX56 as standard equipment, customers who want Sirius will need to find a new solution.

Position - Long Sirius, Long XM

Starting today Sirius is offering current subscribers their choice of a free Sportster 4 or Starmate 4 after mail in rebate. This hot offer is only available to customers with existing accounts (which are currently in good standing) who would like to add an additional account for just $6.99 per month.

All you have to do is purchase one of these top of the line plug and play units before September 16th and activate your additional subscription by September 30th. If you have been debating on grabbing an additional account, what better excuse is there than free?

I always think its great when companies make a point of rewarding loyal customers instead of simply focusing on acquiring new customers, cough cough… cell phone companies.