Sirius XM Merger Vote Soon

Sirius and XM today revealed that their shareholders will vote next month on the companies' proposed merger, helping both firms finalize the deal first begun in February. A newly published SEC filing lists November 13th as the date and confirms the companies' intent to close the deal by the end of 2007. While only XM is voting on the merger itself, both companies' shareholders are required to approve the transaction, which would leave a unified company as the only satellite radio provider in North America.

If approved by the companies' investors, the merger would still require permission from the FCC, which has been considering a reversal of a 1997 declaration that would otherwise prevent Sirius and XM from completing the deal. The government regulator has been accepting comments on the merger over the past several months and has received stiff opposition from the National Association of Broadcasters, which claims that a sole satellite radio company would constitute a monopoly. Both Sirius and XM have responded by arguing that the competition is not between each other but between other music listening formats, such as traditional radio and iPods.

By Electronista Staff