Consumer Union Wants Confidential Documents Brought To Light
One thing that is often of concern when this issue arises is what the “INTENT” of the FCC interoperable mandate was, and what was required of the companies. Sirius and XM have stated in the past that they were in compliance with the mandate and certified that this was the case. The FCC has never rendered a decision on whether or not the companies are or are not in compliance. This puts the interoperable issue squarely onto the FCC.
Whether an interoperable device would have changed the subscriber picture also needs to be considered. In other words, what would the crossover have been? If such a device were to have been brought to market, it would appear that the crossover would not have been very big. Even today with inexpensive receivers, and no penalties for leaving a service, consumers are not switching between Sirius and XM.
Consumers Union does issue some valid considerations, but their criticism of the interoperable mandate should be pointed as much if not more so in the direction of the FCC for their lack of rendering a decision on the documentation Sirius and XM have supplied.
Position: Long Sirius – XM
Interoperable Devices are already in the marketplace and cosumers are unaware !
Say What?
When asked regarding the completion of a radio that can receive both XM and Sirius signals, Mr. Karmazin states: “We have one. It’s in my office. At this point, there is no market for it because nobody is subsidizing the cost of the (dual) radio. Today what Sirius does is that we subsidize (our) receiver”. And the reason we subsidize it is because we’re gonna get a subscription. So, we think with the merger this really represents an opportunity for us to be able to financially subsidize radios that provide for interoperability”.
• “It is acknowledged that SIRIUS, XM and their manufacturing partners already produce receivers that permit end users to access all Satellite Digital Audio Radio systems in compliance with FCC interoperability obligations.”
• “It is not possible for the current production satellite receivers to simultaneously receive both the XM and Sirius signals. In order for consumers to simultaneously receive the signals of both providers, they would need new interoperable radios or need to purchase two separate current production receivers.”
• “On January 28, 2005, you asked XM Radio Ind. (“XM”) and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (“Sirius”) to update you on their activities related to receiver design. XM and Sirius jointly submit this letter in response to your request, and reconfirm their compliance with Section 25.144(a)(3)(ii) of the Commission’s rules by including interoperable radios on their respective system designs.”