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Sirius Raises Basic Plan 12%

I thought they raised the price 2 years ago due to the increase in music royalties? Perhaps that's a different plan?

Unfortunately, this is not a good time to be raising rates.
 
TheBigA said:
I thought they raised the price 2 years ago due to the increase in music royalties? Perhaps that's a different plan?

Unfortunately, this is not a good time to be raising rates.
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The link sez this is their first raise in the basic package since 2002. I think you are correct....they have raised other packages since.

Just got a call from them tonight wanting me to sign up after my new-car trial. Not a chance.
 
Let me guess...after they get the new 12% increase, they plan to lower the audio quility by another 12%?

It really couldn't sound much worse, but I suppose they could cram another dozen channels in.
 
I think the rate increase on January 1 amounts to only about $1.50 per month. For me, I'm going to drop XM when the increase takes place. Heck, they recently jacked up my bill to pay licensing fees. It's a nickel here...a dime there...and before you know it, the dollars ADD UP. In this "wonderful" economy and with my wife and I going into retirement, we are evaluating ALL expenses and anyone who raises prices for a non-necessary item is getting dropped. This will include my cable-TV if they jack that up any higher!

I have a large collection of CDs and will just listen to my MP3 and iPod players for music in the future.

The line has been drawn in my family...
 
KR4BD said:
In this "wonderful" economy and with my wife and I going into retirement, we are evaluating ALL expenses and anyone who raises prices for a non-necessary item is getting dropped. This will include my cable-TV if they jack that up any higher!
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If you are serious about dropping cable "if" they raise their rates (the more operative word to use is "when") you might want to dust off those bunny ears now and see whats shaking loose where you live.

There are absolutes in this world: The sun will rise from the East and the price of cable will never go down.
 
I dropped XM two years ago when Sirius started ramming their progamming style on XM after the hostile takeover. The rate increase due to royalty payments was also a contributing factor. It was a shame since I really enjoyed having XM.

For $100 less a year, I now have the VIP package from Live 365, and I get more music stations as well (commercial free).
 
Robnoxious said:
KR4BD said:
In this "wonderful" economy and with my wife and I going into retirement, we are evaluating ALL expenses and anyone who raises prices for a non-necessary item is getting dropped. This will include my cable-TV if they jack that up any higher!
Click to expand...

If you are serious about dropping cable "if" they raise their rates (the more operative word to use is "when") you might want to dust off those bunny ears now and see whats shaking loose where you live.

There are absolutes in this world: The sun will rise from the East and the price of cable will never go down.
Click to expand...


The outdoor antenna is already up. About 40 different channels come in clearly. Yes, I will miss ESPN and Fox News, but if those folks are smart, they may have to piggy-back their programming on terrestrial TV channels as cable subscriptions are dropping like a rock around the country.
 
My Sirius subscription that came with my vehicle ran out last week. I was considering renewing, but this kills that chance.

Sirius was nice, but their non-music content didn't interest me. The cost just isn't going to be worth it if you only listen to 2 music channels.
 
Casey said:
The cost just isn't going to be worth it if you only listen to 2 music channels.
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I think a lot of people feel that way. In another thread, people feel that way about cable TV packages too. In the long run, this business model will hurt them both as costs keep rising. Content is getting cheaper, not more expensive, as a result of competing technology. People shouldn't have to pay more. The day of reckoning for sports teams is coming, as it already has for recording artists.
 
This sucks. I have SIRIUS and I listen to several music stations, a few news/talk, but no sports or Howard. There is no cheaper package that would seem to include the music and the news and ditch the rest.

This is the classic cable scam that forces non-sports liking people to subsidize everyone else's sports habit (ESPN at over $2/sub)

I will threaten to cancel on the 1st unless they offer a deal. I might even cancel for a month and then they'll probably send me a deal in the mail. As long as they offer more deals then I may keep it going.
 
Seems Netflix/Qwikster have cut loose one million subscribers due to their price increase recently. Wonder how much damage Sirius/XM's increase will cause?

Can I get a job as CEO of one of these companies? I can make stupid decisions much cheaper than they are. ;D
 
I dumped my XM about a year ago now and I am glad I did. Rate increases with no real increase in service quality and those customer service reps that are well, just plain hard to deal with.

It was after a lengthy dispute over of all things $13 that XM wanted to charge me for one month they couldn't bill me for because my CC had expired. I told them if they'd drop the month they gave me for free, and then let me pay per month I'd keep the service, but terminate it when I saw fit because I thought the programming was getting poorer and poorer in quality. They refused and about every two months try to lure me back. I tell them the same thing each time the offer and again they refuse. They want that CC so badly to insure they can at least continue to bill for three months of their crappy service in advance each cycle. Not happening here.

I still cannot see how with a business model such as they rely on, they continue to stay afloat.
 
Why doesn't XM offer a true "A-la-carte" package: no sports, just 10 music channels for $5/month?
Why doesn't cable TV offer a "non-sports" 'a la carte' package, again, you pick your 10 channels for $10 a month.

I would go for both, but neither will do it, even though they clearly have the ability to lock out all channels except a few based on your XM serial number or digital cable TV box.

In this economy, I don't know why these guys wouldn't rather keep the same or more subs, but with less income? Screw ESPN and their $3.95 a sub they charge my cable co - and I don't watch them, yet subsidize the rest.

Is Mel Karmazin and your local Cable Co as stupid as NetFlix - I'd say "yes" on that one, sorry to say.
 
JohnnyElectron said:
In this economy, I don't know why these guys wouldn't rather keep the same or more subs, but with less income?
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Nobody wants "less income." They assume most people will just pay the new fee. And amazingly, the majority do.

While you're lobbying the cable companies, tell Congress I want ala carte taxes. I'll pay only for things I like. See how far you get.
 
JohnnyElectron said:
Why doesn't XM offer a true "A-la-carte" package: no sports, just 10 music channels for $5/month?
Why doesn't cable TV offer a "non-sports" 'a la carte' package, again, you pick your 10 channels for $10 a month.

I would go for both, but neither will do it, even though they clearly have the ability to lock out all channels except a few based on your XM serial number or digital cable TV box.

In this economy, I don't know why these guys wouldn't rather keep the same or more subs, but with less income? Screw ESPN and their $3.95 a sub they charge my cable co - and I don't watch them, yet subsidize the rest.

Is Mel Karmazin and your local Cable Co as stupid as NetFlix - I'd say "yes" on that one, sorry to say.



The reason cable/satellite companies do not offer al-la-carte is simple, there is no money to be made, they would go out of business. Plain and simple, as much as I wish they would be able to offer it, it will never happen. I NEVER watch any sports channels, could give a damn about the over paid sports channels. Everything is dollars and cents, ESPN will never allow DISH to make it a seperate sub channel, like HBO and movie channels, because it would loose BILLIONS. DISH has 14 million subs, if half (including myself) would not subscribe, it is a HUGE loss for ESPN, verses making everyone pay. A-LA-CARTE will NEVER happen, in satelitte, or cable etc simple economics.
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