The World is Round: Radio, Schmadio Part Three: The Plot Thickens

We've been talking radio the last few months, about the medium's slow (migrating to fast) decline, and we've been leading up to the skinny on satellite radio and why that's such a big damn deal.

A decade ago, when I wrote for a radio trade newspaper and digital audio was one of my beats, I used to feel like the odd man out: there I was, the net in the center of the ping-pong table, feeling the lobs rush over my head as the satellite execs and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) lobbed shots at each other. In my guise as Reporter Guy, I couldn't take sides, although the NAB's position against satellite radio seemed to be knee-jerk in nature, the same as any industry acts when something comes along that could potentially take the wind out of its sails.

The thing that industry folks don't get, unfortunately, is that by leading from strength, they seem, well, stronger, and when they fight the truly good fight, by making their product more vibrant and useful, they have the potential of not only maintaining market visibility, but also of increasing it. Seems to me that most people would rather complain and argue against competitors than try to improve their foothold, and that's what it has always looked like the NAB was doing, in my view.

That said, the NAB was simply doing what it was supposed to do: represent its member broadcasters and protect them from the assumed satellite threat. I say assumed, because the only potential harm comes from not defending your turf. I used to attend the annual NAB conventions, where broadcasters would, among other things, complain about low ratings, withering community support, and poor market share. I'd ask them what they were doing to improve their standing, and they'd invariably say that they were doing what they'd always been doing, and it just wasn't working for them any more. They'd complain about new technologies fighting for consumers' time. But they hardly ever had solutions.

So here comes satellite, which took a long time to get off the ground, and is a growth industry, in its infancy, taking its first baby steps. Yes, baby steps: Despite what you see in your local electronics stores, and on television, and despite what you read in the newspapers, satellite is nothing more than a technology beginning to get its sea legs. Note that XM currently has about 2.5 million subscribers; Sirius about 700,000. What with all of the dumps (retail term for cardboard visibility constructions that stock one company's products, or a specific movie, for example, in the hopes of attracting brand-specific consumer purchases) for XM satellite radio in stores, one would think satellite radio was as essential a purchase as a vacuum cleaner or a TV-on-DVD box set.

Well, in some ways, it is, because satellite radio is definitely buzz-worthy. Newspapers and magazines are constantly carrying stories about it, and it's tough to look for a parking spot at a mall without spying one or two satellite radio antennas on the roofs or trunks of cars. XM and, to a lesser extent its direct competitor Sirius, have been good about getting the word out-well, Sirius is getting better, with its eye-catching television commercials featuring Sirius, the CGI dog (and the giveaway of many hundreds of radios at future Sirius shock jock Howard Stern's headline-grabbing New York City rally didn't hurt). XM, in particular, has been aggressive about making new products available to extend the usage of its service, which costs $9.95 a month versus Sirius's $12.95 price tag (but keep in mind that Sirius includes the ability to listen on the Internet for account holders; XM charges extra for that privilege.). Now, with XM, you can even jog and listen to its offerings; I have no doubt Sirius is not far behind on that score.

Which is all well and good, but why should terrestrial radio operators worry about a technology that is in its infancy? Because satellite is serving listeners with commercial-free music channels, and generous dollops of songs that didn't top the charts. Because they're also offering DJs in the spirit of the sixties and seventies personalities who invest themselves into their shows, something that most terrestrial radio jocks don't do anymore. And that's not because they don't want to, by the way. The other thing is, they're giving listeners commercial free product. Oh, yeah-I said that already.

Credit-or curse-the big corporations that own the majority of terrestrial stations in the United States for the ongoing, strict, narrow view of radio programming. Programming on terrestrial stations serves the advertisers, not the other way around. Programming, it seems, now plays second fiddle to ads. Now, to be fair, radio is a business, and stations have to pay the bills and make a profit, but the balance is way off. Listen to Howard Stern sometime and dig those 15 minute stop sets. It's enough to send you dialing for another station, even if Stern is your favorite shock jock and you can't wait to hear what he's going to say next.

Satellite can do what terrestrial radio can't: it can target specific listening interests, so you get the usual suspects-classic rock, jazz, country, etc.-alongside world music, comedy, talk from the left and the right (and straight down the center), eclectic (both XM and Sirius operate stations that mix every type of music you can imagine), and channels dedicated to specific decades. And you get all of this in CD-quality sound with no commercials. If you've been dying to hear completely uncensored Stern, you'll be in heaven come January 2006, when the King of All Media moves over to Sirius from his current stable of Infinity and beyond stations. Stern, with no commercial breaks and unbridled honesty served up with enough salty language to satisfy anyone with a free speech jones, will be something to hear. (Keep in mind that, should Infinity's owner CBS finally have enough of Stern's incessant satellite radio plugs, his satellite debut could come even sooner.)

What else can satellite radio serve up? How about up-to-the-minute weather and traffic information to targeted cities, allowing mobile listeners to abandon listening to terrestrial stations just to hear whether their ride to work will be quick and easy or slow and feisty. Satellite operators can serve up just about anything they want, and they don't have to worry about the FCC or any other organization coming down on them for airing supposed indecent programming. The thing is, you pay for satellite, so it's assumed that you know what you're getting, and if you are offended at anything, you can complain to management, which, I assume, will take action should there be enough cause. Otherwise, you're free to tune to the next channel.

Channels. That's what they call stations on satellite radio. Get used to the new lingo, and get used to satellite, because it's here to stay, and it's only going to grow. At some point in time, I believe it will overtake terrestrial as the prime radio providing technology. That's a ways off, I grant you, but it's going to happen.

Next month, we'll take a look at the programming served up by both XM and Sirius, and, in February 2005, we'll have a chat about Howard Stern and his effect on the future of satellite radio. Because, mark my words, Stern is your go-to satellite guy. Just watch how many people sign on to Sirius as 2005 wraps up, just in time to listen to him dish to paying customers.

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