Satellite Radio Is Sinking

The inevitable is almost here. The progress of technology is leaving those behind that can not adapt to changing media delivery methods. Since the white flag was raised at XM last year, it has been up to Sirius to carry the burden of staying afloat aboard an ever shrinking ship.

Howard Stern has been master and commander of this effort at Sirius, but with his $100 million salary, the sea is getting rough and the competition is amassing for a broadside assault. Sirius has accumulated large debt before the market crash, and now weakened by the recent economic woes, they have a serious financial storm on the horizon. With over $3 billion long-term debt, reduced consumer spending, stagnant auto sales, the rise of alternate technology, and homogenized content, the future for Sirius does not look good. In fact, it looks grim.

Sirius plans on increasing their prices for multiple account subscribers and online streams in order to stay afloat. Users will be able to avoid this cost, by signing up for long-term contracts or paying $500 for a lifetime subscription. Although they assure subscribers that they have no plans to increase the standard monthly charges, it is unclear why prospective customers and month-to-month subscribers would continue to pay for a service, while mobile internet radio in on the rise.

Electronics manufacturer, Blaupunkt, released the first in-dash internet-based car stereo at the CES show this year in Las Vegas,which is sure push other manufacturers in doing the same.

This is the future. With the rise of cellular-based internet radio applications for cellular phones, including the widely popular iPhone (AOL Radio, Pandora, Wunder, Live365, iHeart Radio, and others) it is only a matter of time before consumers decide that this is the best way to get their music, news, podcasts, and other feeds. Consumers can now connect their cellular phones and other media devices directly into their vehicle's stereo by a number of methods recently adopted by most auto manufactures. Auto makers are now even providing a wireless way to stay connected to your car, though the use of Bluetooth technology.

Mobile internet media distribution is poised to be the death of Sirius, with constantly expanding cellular networks, ever improving bandwidth, competing providers, extreme portability, and unlimited use with existing data plans. Sirius is sailing into the into an ever brewing storm of competition, poised to hijack important market share crucial for satellite radio to stay afloat. If changes aren't made to keep existing subscribers and attract new customers, Sirius is sure sail off into the sunset.