XM / Sirius Last Straw: Time To Fire The FCC

JC said:

Actually, they should fire you for being an idiot. Your point that the FCC has no business restricting content is dead on. And that's exactly how they distract nitwits like you from their real job.

The FCC also regulates who owns the media in each market. The last thing this country needs is a disbanding of the FCC. Rupert Murdoch would own every news program and all we would ever hear is how great George Bush is.

Maybe you ought to understand what the FCC actually does, before you argue they are an irrelevant agency.

P.S. You are so pathetic, they distracted you with this while trying to rush a horrendous media ownership rules change through last December. So actually, they are about 1,000 times smarter and more relevant than your analysis. Way to ignore the elephant in the room. You are a true dolt.

Kevin Martin is one of the biggest threats to this country and it's for reasons you are too dumb to understand.

Henry Blodget said:

Mar. 24, 4:43 PM

Hate to sound idealistic, but I believe the free market would support more editorial slants than Fox News.

Again, this might have been an issue (might) before the Internet. Now that the Internet exists, however, any human anywhere on earth has access to whatever media content floats his or her boat.

People watch Fox News because they like Fox News. If they stop liking Fox News, they'll watch something else. Or, more likely, they won't watch anything--they'll just go online, where the FCC (thankfully) barely has any jurisdiction.

Gus Mitchell said:

Mar. 24, 4:49 PM

Amen, Mr. Blodget. Amen.

Anton said:

Mar. 24, 4:56 PM

Isn't the FCC where the unsuccessful off-spring of big time pols go to 'hang out'?
FCC stopped being an effective arbitrer of media 'fairness' years ago and its efforts to de-centralize media ownership are/were equally as pathetic. Some agencies are vital and worth fixing (FDA anyone) not sure the FCC qualifies. I second Henry's take.

Kevin Nimmo said:

Mar. 24, 5:00 PM

JC may have a few valid points but he negates them by being angry and calling names. Whatever happened to a civil discussion while showing the individual with whom you disagree respect for their point of view? Sadly, this is the level to which discourse has fallen and JC is a perfect example.

Irn said:

Mar. 24, 5:30 PM

Henry,

I love you free market types, with the exception of regulations costing you risk free capitol gains. The FCC auction off this spectrum less then a decade ago with the rules being very simple, only two players (duopoly), and they could not merge. Since these fools paid 500m for Howard Stern, Nascar on the radio, etc, they piled up tons of losses. No better bailout then a merger. Let one of them go dark, and let these frequencies back on the auction block for more HD satellite, Google, whatever, let the market decided. Too easy, when you can double your bet with a public bailout.

Bjorn Tipling (URL) said:

Mar. 24, 6:50 PM

Why do you think that xm and sirius are dead?

WriterGuy said:

Mar. 24, 7:28 PM

@Henry -

You expect way too much of the "free market." Other than maximized profits, it's not designed to provide much of anything. Certainly not a free and open exchange of ideas.

That's why when television was established, the Fairness Doctrine was established. Why should the opinions expressed on television be solely those of the five corporate giants that control virtually all the programming?

That's not freedom. That's not the free market. That's fascism.

NoKevinFan said:

Mar. 25, 7:47 AM

Kevin Martin's contributions:

Kill the independent VOIP business through regulations (E911) the incumbents today still can't comply with.

Moral compass of America!

Stopping Net Neutrality dialog in its tracks (filling the house with shills was a typical low-class move by him)

Changing media ownership rules to pander to future clients/employers

Being so far up the tailpipes of the ILECs that I shorted Comcast and made a bunch.

Kevin, your bullying and biased tactics have made you a reviled person, and I think you will find life post-Bush filled with lots of staring at a phone that won't ring. Here's hoping you can get enough from AT&T for having pushed their agenda for so long.

Timothy Day said:

Mar. 25, 6:50 PM

Let's face it the country has run amok in regards to looking out for the consumer, to say otherwise is ludicrous. Why else is our Congress holding hearings to discuss whether Roger Clements is on steroids, who gives a sh*t. It is nothing more than congress wanting to meet a celebrity. I do not think they do it as a direct insult to our intelligence, rather, they do not know any better. If the past seven years has taught us anything it is that you look out for number one and to hell with the rest (right,W?). I digress.
The National Association of Broadcasters are shaking in their boots. Since the exodus of big radio money-maker Howard Stern, terrestrial radio has gone to the dogs. If Sirius and XM are even half as successful as they have been in the last two years (Sirius subscriptions alone went from roughly 500k to over 6.5 mil. in that time) terrestrial radio will be useful for nothing more than "the emergency broadcasting system". You may not like Howard Sterns radio personality, but ask anyone who owned a radio station that he was on in the mornings and they will tell you the money was never (and will never be) better than it was. Long story short (too late), the FCC is as relevant as snake oil in todays mass-media environment, with parental locks and blue chip technology who isn't able to take control of what their kids watch and listen to? The FCC knows it and has to create high profile issues to keep their jobs.. Create chaos and people will listen. Just look at Fox News and you will get my point!

Timothy Day said:

Mar. 25, 6:55 PM

Let's face it the country has run amok in regards to looking out for the consumer, to say otherwise is ludicrous. Why else is our Congress holding hearings to discuss whether Roger Clements is on steroids, who gives a sh*t. It is nothing more than congress wanting to meet a celebrity. I do not think they do it as a direct insult to our intelligence, rather, they do not know any better. If the past seven years has taught us anything it is that you look out for number one and to hell with the rest (right,W?). I digress.
The National Association of Broadcasters are shaking in their boots. Since the exodus of big radio money-maker Howard Stern, terrestrial radio has gone to the dogs. If Sirius and XM are even half as successful as they have been in the last two years (Sirius subscriptions alone went from roughly 500k to over 6.5 mil. in that time) terrestrial radio will be useful for nothing more than "the emergency broadcasting system". You may not like Howard Sterns radio personality, but ask anyone who owned a radio station that he was on in the mornings and they will tell you the money was never (and will never be) better than it was. Long story short (too late), the FCC is as relevant as snake oil in todays mass-media environment, with parental locks and blue chip technology who isn't able to take control of what their kids watch and listen to? The FCC knows it and has to create high profile issues to keep their jobs.. Create chaos and people will listen. Just look at Fox News and you will get my point!

My2Cents said:

Mar. 26, 10:38 AM

Henry, I absolutely agree with your highlighting of the problems on the FCC. You are correct in pointing out that the agency is probably in the pockets of the radio industry and probably XM-Sirius as well (for this is the classic definition of monopoly when one defines the market as satellite radio vs. radio). It's tantamount to approving the merger of all cable operators (MSOs) by arguing that broadcast TV also competes with them.

However, I do think that the FCC has a role in the economy. In my opinion, it is there to regulate concentration of media ownership and make sure consumers have a choice. Despite the seemingly easy answer of "free markets" and not regulation, it is myopic to think that the principles of free markets alone can solve the problems facing the media industry today. In my opinion, free markets work only when there is robust competition. This approval clearly goes against that. But the issue is not the agency, it is the people running the agency who don't do what they are suppose to do.

This is what the Internet is all about - at least at its current incarnation. It is epitomizes free markets. As you can see, however, major media corporations are doing their best to control the Internet. How so? By claiming that owning the pipes makes them own the Internet and by claiming that any use of their content is protected and must be compensated. Of course, content creators need to be compensated but there is a point where one could argue that the prices being charged to online services are not based on demand but are based on protecting existing related businesses. The music industry's behavior is the classic example of this.

The ironic thing about all this is that so-called free market advocates tend to like using regulatory bodies and Congress not only to raise barriers to entry (e.g. regulating spectrum, local carriage agreements) but also protect their existing lines of business or business models no matter how obsolete (e.g. see RIAA). Many companies want to have their cake and eat it too. They have turned regulatory bodies into their protectors rather than the consumers' guardians. Again, does this mean that no regulation is the best solution? No. In my opinion, it means that proper regulation is required and necessary to preserve truly free markets.

I agreed with your point b/c this approval rewards lazy and incompetent people, lessens competition, and further concentrates ownership. But this country needs the help of proper regulation in order to get back on track. It's about finding the right balance and it will be a constant struggle to 'perfection'.

Bill said:

Mar. 26, 11:08 AM

XM is dead , hardly, as a long time radio listener I still think sat radio is the best thing we have ever had,

Julie Anderton said:

Mar. 26, 4:02 PM

Henry: you display an alarming lack of intelligence in your writing on this topic. I'm not certain that this is a calculated strategy, or if you are genetically predisposed to that sort of thing. Perhaps it would be wise to seek the assistance of your elders and betters.

Any argument that you could make that the absence of regulation in broadcasting is a good thing falls flat on its face. We have had decades to evaluate the effect of loosening regulation, and the media market that we currently have as a result is a travesty.

The ease by which today's corporatized print, radio, and television 'journalism' serves everyone but the public makes a mockery of the freedom of the press.

Commissioner Martin is a fine example of a stooge, sent up by this administration to preserve the figment of regulation, while doing everything in his power to ensure that it is toothless.

The Sirius-XM merger is a tempest in a teapot. It is by no means a justification for the elimination of the FCC.

Henry: the world long remembers your track record over the past decade. A smarter man would seek wiser counsel, learn judgment, and practice needed humility. Become a smarter man, Henry. A smarter man.

Matt Miller said:

Mar. 28, 7:04 PM

Martin has proven that he isn't capable with the handling of this merger. A child can see the need. He should be terminated, but what do we expect from any Bush appointee by incompetence.

CaptKim said:

Apr. 01, 7:42 PM

I think the FCC should butt out. Dish Network and Direct TV are both owened by Echo Star, They did the samething Siri and xm are trying to do. They are being fair with the customers. Just another example of being a free american and government control. They should spend more time on Fuel and medication and Feeding the Ameicans that can't afford it while industry is raking in Billions and sticking it in the pockets. Whats going to happen is a war between the states, people are not going to put up with this much longer.

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