Where's the NEW FREE Channels they HAVE TO give us?

[JohnnyElectron]

Still waiting Mr. Melvin Karmazin for the 4-8 FREE channels that you are required to give all listeners, even those with deactivated radios, as a part of YOUR agreement with the FCC for the merger.

Hey Mel, Let's see what you promised the FCC:
1a- NO increases; Lie; gave us higher cost on 'family plan' radios.
1b- NO increases; Lie; TOOK AWAY our INCLUDED at no cost ONLINE service
1c- NO increases; half lie; added royalty fee, but made it RETROACTIVE FOREVER!
2- Inter-operative radios: half-baked attempt - only ONE radio (Merge) that gets both services and it's not seamless and requires two subs.
3- 4 Free channels on XM and 4 Free channels on Sirius for minorities, etc. to broadcast what they want (like Aquila XM92?) - NOTHING
4- It also appears Mel has taken away the Emergency Channel 247 as well? Can anyone verify that, as that would wipe out EAS alerts and other emergency info as was broadcast during Katrina.

 

[Bill_W]

I hear testing of the EAS on XM.

 

[JohnnyElectron]

Yep, I've heard the EAS on the music channels, but I'm wondering if they have it on the 'barker' Channel #1 - and, are they offering their channel 247 anymore with emergency WX info? I thinkg Siri dumped their WX from 184 all together??

 

[CTListener]

Yep, I've heard the EAS on the music channels, but I'm wondering if they have it on the 'barker' Channel #1 - and, are they offering their channel 247 anymore with emergency WX info? I thinkg Siri dumped their WX from 184 all together??

The contract with The Weather Channel expired and Mel & Co. pinched more pennies and didn't renew it. 247 is running a low bitrate loop telling people they can get weather info on the traffic/weather channels (from about two dozen major markets) and on Road Dog Trucking radio (not really weather, just driving conditions on the interstates a couple of times an hour, and the channel is often forced off the air to free up bandwidth for sports). Bottom line: If that hurricane in the Gulf were headed for New Orleans or Mobile or Pensacola instead of Mexico, the only coverage Sirius XM would have would be television-on-radio, via CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. Yup, that's real public service there, Mel, you cheap SOB.

 

[FRR]

Still waiting Mr. Melvin Karmazin for the 4-8 FREE channels that you are required to give all listeners, even those with deactivated radios, as a part of YOUR agreement with the FCC for the merger.

Hey Mel, Let's see what you promised the FCC:
1a- NO increases; Lie; gave us higher cost on 'family plan' radios.
1b- NO increases; Lie; TOOK AWAY our INCLUDED at no cost ONLINE service
1c- NO increases; half lie; added royalty fee, but made it RETROACTIVE FOREVER!
2- Inter-operative radios: half-baked attempt - only ONE radio (Merge) that gets both services and it's not seamless and requires two subs.
3- 4 Free channels on XM and 4 Free channels on Sirius for minorities, etc. to broadcast what they want (like Aquila XM92?) - NOTHING
4- It also appears Mel has taken away the Emergency Channel 247 as well? Can anyone verify that, as that would wipe out EAS alerts and other emergency info as was broadcast during Katrina.

AND, no one at the FCC holds them accountable. Why?

 

[WPPCProductions]

Still waiting Mr. Melvin Karmazin for the 4-8 FREE channels that you are required to give all listeners, even those with deactivated radios, as a part of YOUR agreement with the FCC for the merger.

Hey Mel, Let's see what you promised the FCC:
1a- NO increases; Lie; gave us higher cost on 'family plan' radios.
1b- NO increases; Lie; TOOK AWAY our INCLUDED at no cost ONLINE service
1c- NO increases; half lie; added royalty fee, but made it RETROACTIVE FOREVER!
2- Inter-operative radios: half-baked attempt - only ONE radio (Merge) that gets both services and it's not seamless and requires two subs.
3- 4 Free channels on XM and 4 Free channels on Sirius for minorities, etc. to broadcast what they want (like Aquila XM92?) - NOTHING
4- It also appears Mel has taken away the Emergency Channel 247 as well? Can anyone verify that, as that would wipe out EAS alerts and other emergency info as was broadcast during Katrina.

AND, no one at the FCC holds them accountable. Why?

Money.......

 

[CTListener]

Still waiting Mr. Melvin Karmazin for the 4-8 FREE channels that you are required to give all listeners, even those with deactivated radios, as a part of YOUR agreement with the FCC for the merger.

Hey Mel, Let's see what you promised the FCC:
1a- NO increases; Lie; gave us higher cost on 'family plan' radios.
1b- NO increases; Lie; TOOK AWAY our INCLUDED at no cost ONLINE service
1c- NO increases; half lie; added royalty fee, but made it RETROACTIVE FOREVER!
2- Inter-operative radios: half-baked attempt - only ONE radio (Merge) that gets both services and it's not seamless and requires two subs.
3- 4 Free channels on XM and 4 Free channels on Sirius for minorities, etc. to broadcast what they want (like Aquila XM92?) - NOTHING
4- It also appears Mel has taken away the Emergency Channel 247 as well? Can anyone verify that, as that would wipe out EAS alerts and other emergency info as was broadcast during Katrina.

AND, no one at the FCC holds them accountable. Why?

Money.......

Meaning the FCC is on the take?

 

[livingfruitvirus]

The FCC keeps delaying the process. That's why you haven't seen them yet. Besides, does anyone REALLY want these channels? I have a feeling the takers for these channels won't provide anything new or interesting, and I suspect a lot of infomercials.

 

[FRR]

Why would the FCC delay the process that XM agreed to? Is this because of a request from Mel, or what? Sure there are folks who would like some of the offers that Mel putatively was going to offer. There must be more to this story.

 

[livingfruitvirus]

Why would the FCC delay the process that XM agreed to? Is this because of a request from Mel, or what? Sure there are folks who would like some of the offers that Mel putatively was going to offer. There must be more to this story.

Because the FCC is directly involved in approving what organizations will receive a piece of the handout.

 

[CTListener]

Why would the FCC delay the process that XM agreed to? Is this because of a request from Mel, or what? Sure there are folks who would like some of the offers that Mel putatively was going to offer. There must be more to this story.

Because the FCC is directly involved in approving what organizations will receive a piece of the handout.

There's also speculation that, due to the lingering economic near-depression, fewer organizations have the necessary cash on hand to pay for the lease. If nobody can pay for the channels, there will be no channels. They're not "handouts," despite the widespread use of that term. Sirius XM will make money off them, and maybe even save some money if the bandwidth those channels use forces more niche channels out -- more employees for Mel to show the door.

 

[Bengalsfan]

The only way things will change is when people, regular subs, start dumping the service. I was a strong supporter of XM...until the merger. After five years, I dumped it. The playlists on the decades channels went to crap. Other programming went to crap, I mean, two channels with Glenn Beck?! Hello?

I now download podcasts from every show but one that I listened to on XM. So I don't miss it all that much.

If you are really unhappy with the service, dump it. Vote with your checkbooks...I did.

 

[nd2023]

Instead of offering EAS on satellite, why not just have a weather radio built in to every satellite radio? If a hurricane's hitting a populated area the local stations should be enough, and if those are out there are many 50kw all news stations in distant markets that will provide non stop coverage. During Katrina WWL stayed on and I listened to that station all the way in NJ just to hear the local coverage of the storm.

 

[JohnnyElectron]

good idea Nick; have a VHF NOAA WX Radio built into every XM radio - it's already got a dandy display - you program your county with the numeric entry one time and it remembers it - and even if you didn't get the audio, you could still read the warning text in the display - ie: "Tornado Warning, Fulton County, 8:45pm - 9:15pm EDT".
IF the FCC etc is in a mood to 'force' radios onto us, XM should take a pre-emptive strike and add a NOAA Weather Radio instead of being forced to add an FM radio, like the cellphone industry will likely have to do.

 

[mikl73]

There is allot of difference between the antenna used to pick up the satellite service and the type of antenna needed to receive a usable signal from a WX station.