Satellite radio offers out-of-this-world possibilities

01:00 AM EST on Sunday, January 8, 2006

BY ANDY SMITH
Journal Television Writer

Tomorrow is not just any old Monday. At least not for Howard Stern and his legion of radio fans.

Tomorrow morning at 6, Stern begins his much-ballyhooed stint on Sirius Satellite Radio, leaving earthbound "terrestrial radio" and the pesky bureaucrats of the Federal Communications Commission far, far behind.

As far as Sirius is concerned, this is an earth-shattering event. The company has taken out full-page newspaper ads to promote the occasion, with a giant headline reading: "Let Freedom Ring. And Let It Be Rung by a Stripper."

Stern, who has been hit with $2 million in FCC fines during his career, is portraying the move to satellite radio, whose content is not regulated by the federal government, as a liberation.

"The thing that changes is there is total freedom to create," he told The Washington Post. "It's almost like being a baby in broadcasting again. I have let myself get so beaten down by the FCC. I've become so accustomed to their abuse, like a battered wife. I didn't even know how dead I was inside, creatively."

Exactly what Stern will do with this newfound freedom is still a secret, although Sirius spokesman Patrick Reilly promised "revelations and surprises" tomorrow.

Sirius has turned over two channels, 100 and 101, to Stern, who now has his own news team, Howard 100 News, and plans an entire lineup of shows for Sirius.

Among them are Meet the Sterns, which will bring Howard's parents into the studio; The Crack Whore View ("Hittin' the pipe and the mic"); Bubba the Love Sponge; and Tissue Time, with phone sex experts Heidi and Blue Iris.

Even so, more than one radio observer has wondered if Stern will be as much fun when he's no longer dueling the FCC.

"Wasn't some of Howard's appeal how outrageous he could be on a federally licensed property?" said Jim Corwin, who runs Clear Channel's four Rhode Island stations.

It's a half-billion-dollar gamble for Sirius. The company is paying Stern a whopping $500 million over five years. Now the question is how many of Stern's 12 million listeners will come with him.

Because there's a catch. Satellite radio is a subscription service that costs $12.95 per month, not to mention the initial cost of the receiver, which can range from under $50 to several hundred dollars.

Incidentally, Stern's show will not be commercial-free. While the two competing satellite services, Sirius and XM, boast that their music channels have no ads, talk channels such as Stern's do carry them. (Reilly said the number of ads on Stern's two channels will still be far less than on conventional radio stations.)

Reilly said Sirius' subscriber base jumped from 1 million a year ago to more than 3 million now. How much of that increase is due to Stern is impossible to know, although Reilly said Stern is "very very significant" in drawing new subscribers.

So significant that Sirius announced last week that it will give Stern 34 million shares of stock -- worth about $220 million -- because the company met its targets for gaining new subscribers under its 2004 contract with Stern.

One of those new suscribers is Kristen Owen, a Smithfield artist who got Sirius radio for Christmas from her husband. Owen said that listening to Stern in her car on the way to work makes her laugh out loud.

"I wanted it primarily to listen to Howard Stern," she said. "But I also love jazz and blues, and there are a ton of things to choose from. While I've been waiting for Howard, I've been listening to the blues channel, which is really cool."

The competition

Sirius' larger rival, XM Satellite Radio, has not been sitting idly by while Stern gobbles up all the publicity. Last month, XM announced that Bob Dylan would host a show on one of its rock channels.

Stern and Dylan are only the biggest names enlisting in the satellite radio battle. XM also has Tom Petty, Snoop Dogg and Cal Ripken Jr. Sirius counters with Jimmy Buffett, Eminem and Martha Stewart.

Oh, and don't forget Sirius' Elvis Radio -- all Elvis, all the time -- and E Street Radio, for those who just can't get enough of Bruce Springsteen.

"It's great to have celebrities associated with your brand, but if you don't have compelling programming, the name alone will not be enough to keep people happy," said Anne-Taylor Griffith, a spokeswoman for XM.

Not surprisingly, Griffith feels that rival Sirius is putting too many eggs in the Howard Stern basket.

"It's a half-billion gamble on one personality," she said. "Yes, it's getting headlines. But we've added more than 2 million subscribers without Howard Stern. We're more focused on choice, not just one person."

XM, which began in 2001, is the larger of the two satellite services, with an estimated 6 million subscribers. Griffith said the company expects to have 20 million by 2010.

The technology

At the very least, celebrities such as Stern and Dylan boost the profile of satellite radio, which is still a relatively unfamiliar technology to many radio listeners.

Satellite radio is only one of several new technologies poised to shake up the radio world, along with radio streamed over the Internet, radio shows made available via iPods and other MP3 players, and digital radio.

As its name implies, satellite radio bounces radio signals off orbiting satellites and back down to individual receivers. The receivers are equipped to receive either XM or Sirius, but not both.

XM has two satellites, one named "Rock" and the other "Roll." Sirius has three.

The satellite signals can also be sent to ground-based repeater transmitters to ensure complete coverage. Between the satellites and the ground transmitters, a satellite-radio subscriber can hear the same station from Maine to California.

But to get satellite radio, you must first have a receiver, pay a $15 activation fee (less if you activate online), then pay the subscription of $12.95 a month.

Receivers range from $50 up to several hundred dollars. Some, called plug 'n' plays, are designed to work in both the car and at a home "docking station." Some can record material off satellite radio for playback later.

A salesman at the Circuit City in Cranston's Garden City shopping center -- by company policy, he said, they are not supposed to be quoted by name -- estimated that his store sold at least 500 satellite radio receivers during the Christmas shopping season, with Sirius holding the lead over XM.

"Some customers came in and said, 'I want the one with Howard Stern,' " he said. "But we also got a lot of people who are interested in NFL games," which Sirius also carries.

The possibilities

Both XM and Sirius pride themselves on offering an enormous number of possibilities. Sirius advertises more than 120 channels of music, talk, news, comedy and sports; XM boasts more than 150 channels.

Like country? XM has seven country channels (although one of them is actually folk), while Sirius has five.

Classic rock? Sirius has early classic rock, later classic rock, deep classic rock, classic hard rock and classic alternative.

Talk? There's talk for liberals, talk for conservatives, talk for gays, Christians, truckers and blacks. XM even includes something called "extreme talk."

In the sports world, Sirius has the NBA as well as the NFL, while XM counters with major league baseball (on 14 play-by-play channels) and NASCAR.

Naturally, both services boast that they have the most comprehensive and creative content.

In a side-by-side analysis by Smart Money magazine last year, radio analysts gave XM the nod for its music programming, while Sirius edged out the competition in news, talk and entertainment -- even before the arrival of Howard Stern.

asmith@projo.com / (401) 277-7262