Sirius plans to buy XM in $4.6 billion stock deal
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Sirius Satellite Radio  plans  to buy larger U.S. rival XM  for $4.6 billion in stock  to bring entertainers such as Oprah Winfrey and shock-jock  Howard Stern under one roof, but a top regulator said the deal  would face a tough time winning approval.
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XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. , which is planning to merge with rival Sirius Satellite Radio , on Monday said its quarterly loss narrowed as it trimmed costs related to growing its base of subscribers.
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Top U.S. satellite radio service XM  Satellite Radio Holdings Inc on Wednesday said it has signed a  deal to air games from Major League Baseball for the next 11  years in a deal worth $650 million.
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By SETH SUTEL  NEW YORK - Satellite radio rivals XM and Sirius have every intention of merging, but not just yet.  Until they clear serious regulatory hurdles, Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.
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Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.   and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.  expect their  merger to close by the end of 2007, according to presentation  slides for an analysts' conference call on Tuesday.
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Washington's XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. plans to announce a deal worth as much as $650 million with Major League Baseball today that will enable the company to carry most regular and postseason games over the next several years beginning with Opening Day 2005, said a source familiar with the deal.
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(InfoWorld) - The U.S.'s two satellite radio operators, Sirius Satellite RadioÂ and XM Satellite Radio Holdings announced Monday they plan to merge, pending a potentially difficult approval process. The all-stock deal will see XM shareholders receiving 4.6 shares of Sirius stock for each XM share they own. The new company would be worth $13 billion, based on the companies' estimates, although neither company has ever turned a profit. Sirius and XM combined lost over a billion dollars last year on total revenues of about $1.5 billion. Because the two are the only companies licensed by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to offer satellite radio services, the merger may face regulatory opposition over creating an industry giant that would be hinder competition. Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin will become the new company's CEO, with Gary Parsons, currently XM's chairman, set to become its new chairman. Executives from both companies will continue in their present roles until the deal closes, expected by the end of 2007. The two companies pioneered the concept of subscription-based radio services, delivered nationwide via satellite. Both Sirius and XM charge subscribers $12.95 per month for their services. Sirius surprised the radio world in 2004 when it signed shock-jock Howard Stern to a five-year, $100 million contract. Stern remains the network's chief draw of over 130 channels, which includes NFL game broadcasts and related talk shows. XM has about 160 channels and counts talk-show and entertainment titan Oprah Winfrey among its celebrities. XM claims 7.6 million subscribers, and Sirius 6 million.
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Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. on Monday said it would to buy out the shareholders of its unit Fox Entertainment Group Inc. in an exchange offer valued at roughly &#36;6 billion.
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U.S. stock futures indicated a flat to slightly lower open on Tuesday as disappointing results from Home Depot Inc.  overshadowed news of major deals, including Sirius Satellite Radio's  plan to buy rival XM Satellite Radio  for $4.6 billion.
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Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. Friday followed its signing of radio ``shock jock&#39;&#39; Howard Stern by announcing an offering of stock and bonds that would raise $290 million.
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Sirius Satellite Radio's plan to buy  rival XM Satellite Radio will test the limits of how much  industry consolidation the business-friendly Bush  administration is willing to permit, some antitrust lawyers  say.
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XM Satellite Radio will carry major league baseball games under a $650 million, 11-year deal announced Wednesday, the latest move in a costly race with rival Sirius Satellite Radio to sign personalities and sports leagues as a way of winning customers. -AP
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(InfoWorld) - A major Taiwanese maker of satellite radios and components stands to benefit from theÂ proposed mergerÂ between two U.S. companies, Sirius Satellite RadioÂ and XM Satellite Radio Holdings, lifting its stock higher in Taipei on Monday. Wistron Neweb Corp. (WNC), one of many spin-offs from the Acer Group when it reorganized several years ago, could grab new orders for its satellite-related components and gear if the Sirius and XM merger is approved, according to Goldman Sachs (Asia). The company may have to wait for good news, however, as the investment banker sees a long road ahead for regulatory approval of the merger. "We believe it would be a big bonus to WNC in the long-term if the merger of Sirius and XM happens, given that Sirius is likely to take the lead on procurement. However, we believe it may not occur in the near term," Goldman Sachs technology analyst Henry King said in a report Monday. Regulatory approval for the proposed deal, valued at $13 billion, could take until the end of this year, he said. Even if a deal is pushed through, it could take as long as until the second half of 2008 for the companies to consolidate their businesses and start ordering gear from a single supplier. Currently, WNC competes with several Taiwanese and South Korean rivals. WNC has long supplied Sirius with satellite radios, and the U.S. company's success has helped boost WNC's shares on the Taiwan Stock Exchange. News of the merger sent WNC shares up NT$2.70, or 3.1 percent, to NT$91.10 (US$2.75) on the TSE Monday, the first day trading resumed after the long Lunar New Year holiday. The main index of the exchange, the TAIEX, rose 1.2 percent on the day. Many Taiwanese factories fill orders for U.S. companies, and often benefit when certain products become popular. For example, Inventec Appliances, which makes some iPod models for Apple, saw its share price rise 30 percent on the day of its initial public offering a year and a half ago because of the popularity of the digital music player and hopes it would continue to gain followers. It was the biggest one-day rise for an initial offering in the market's history. Sirius and XM claim total subscribers of around 13.6 million, 6 million for Sirius and 7.6 million for XM. Â
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U.S. satellite radio  companies Sirius and XM promised on Monday a variety of  subscription packages that cost up to 46 percent less than  current plans if their merger is approved.
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By SETH SUTEL Associated Press  NEW YORK -- Satellite radio rivals XM and Sirius have every intention of merging, but not just yet.   Until they clear serious regulatory hurdles, Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.
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The two main U.S. satellite radio providers, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio on Monday said they would merge in a stock-for-stock deal, a move that has been long expected in the young industry.
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XM Satellite Radio on Wednesday said it signed a &#36;650 million deal to broadcast Major League Baseball games for 11 years, countering a rival's moves to sign up high-profile programing that will lure listeners to the new medium.