StarPlayer Application To Work With iPhone
For as long as I have been involved in satellite radio, there have always been the rumors of a relationship with Apple. The iPod has redefined how people listen to music, and for satellite radio fans, a partnership seemed natural. However, Apple has never been a singer of the same tune, and to this day, integration of satellite radio and Apple has bee a pipe dream.
StarPlayer may change the rules, and this could be welcomed news for satellite radio. Let millions of iPhones sell. They are going to sell anyway. Get included in a slick iPhone application, and you could be in business. The day for iPhone and satellite is now approaching thanks to StarPlayer. Kudos to StarPlayer for making many satellite dreams come true!
Jump up and celebrate! Okay, now that you have all of that out of your system, lets look a bit more deeply into the dynamics of this situation.
First, this is not a true integration, and Apple is not promoting the product. This means that iPhone users will have to find their way to StarPlayer. While typically this is not a huge issue, it does slow the process down a bit.
Second, the fee for downloading the service has not yet been established. Likely, the makers of StarPlayer will want their two cents out of this, and if it were me, I would want money on a recurring basis, not a one shot deal. This could mean that subscribers will be paying a fee above and beyond the subscription to Sirius XM.
Third, the service is the Internet feed. This means that not all Sirius XM content will be available to iPhone users. This can cause customer confusion, and confusion is never a good thing. Additionally, royalties on Internet feeds are more expensive. Sirius XM will still make money, which is good, but it could change the dynamics of certain metrics. Particularly if the StarPlayer application is widely popular.
Fourth, the additional features such as album art, and lyrics are awesome. These are features I use all of the time on my Slacker G2 player, and add a whole new dynamic to the music experience. It may not seem like a big deal, but learning a bit more about the artists you are listening to, and being able to read the lyrics makes listening to that artist more compelling.
Fifth, and application such as this could hamper Sirius XM from ever getting into the main Apple Platform. It could also hamper other potential deals. The more compelling the iPhone becomes the harder it is for the next guy to do something unique. What if Sirius were trying to work with Google on their phone with T-Mobile? Or Verizon and the new Blackberry Storm?
Sixth, is volume. Will the application be a success? If it is, great! The high influx of subscribers will help the business. If it is not a success, people may consider it a failure on the part of Sirius XM.
The promise of an iPhone application has the potential to dramatically impact satellite radio. Millions upon millions of iPhone users are out there, and the ability to tap into that market can be huge. There is reason to be enthusiastic about the upcoming StarPlayer application, but investors should temper that enthusiasm with a a dose that success will not happen over night. Just my opinion, but after Apple rumors every year since 2003, I consider my optimism cautious. Happy to see the development, but cautious just the same.
Thanks Muscle and others
Position – Long Sirius XM, No Position Apple
I hope the people that are writing the code for the application make a killing. That being said, Steve Jobs is a totalitarian, I don’t blame him, it’s business and thats all it is.
If Jobs would take off his blinders and look around, he might see the potential between AAPL/SIRI. The fact that he doesn’t, and treats Mel like some plague, because of dept, or whatever reason, is frustrating to say the least. To me, it looks like the only idea AAPL has left, is to make every product they have, as skinny as Steve is.
If the Starplayer app is not to AAPL specs, they will just remove it from the app store. The good thing is if a customer really wants the app, they can just hack there iphone to get it. I love AAPL products, but I can’t justify paying out of the nose for a computer, when I can get OSS, (Open Source Software), for free and build my own operating system.
Most people don’t have the time, or patients, to build an OpenBSD/Slackware linux system, and I understand that. I am glad I took my free time to learn, it can save you a lot of money in the long run. Unless you own SIRI shares, then you bleed dry like me!!
AAPL/RIMM shares are on sale right now, in my opinion, but I just get that nagging feeling, things will get worse, before they get better in the markets.
Long/SIRI
No longer in AAPL/RIMM at this time.
Everyone have a Happy Turkey Day!!! 🙂
NATIONAL SPONSORSIP. IT’s TIME HAS COME. Hundreds of Millions of Dollars of New yearly Revenue for Sirius Xm. Why are they turning a deaf ear? No commercials, just a few mentions of the hourly sponsor could generate this kind of revenue. Even if they were profitable it should be inplemented.
I agree with this article but what people want is a release date. SiriusXm listeners, shareholders have been hammered with promises or rumors that never come true. Starplayer has been rumored for some time now with no release date ever being set. It just seems like we hear bits and pieces of good news surface and then they go away for awhile and surface again. Hopefully there is a near term release date for this product. The last time i spoke with the people from star player they told me they was still tied up in legal issues and didnt know when they would be resolved.
I also agree with Neal Barkett, lets put some hourly sponsers in here and make some money. Put the sponsers name across the display of the radios. You wouldnt even have to say their name. Just have it go across the display for a few mintues an hour and call it a day. Charge an arm and a leg for it and $$$ Cash in.
Looks like the windows version was released into the wild yesterday. Blackberry ver. and iphone ver. will come out in early /09.
Starplayr is dead. team announced disbanding this morning. I’m sure steve jobs had something to do with it personally. Such crap and political wrangling in the business world. This seemed like a homerun for everyone.. whats the deal?