Wednesday, April 30,2008 @ 4:30pm
Sirius and XM delay meetings, awaiting FCC approval
Both Sirius and XM satellite radio providers decided to postpone their respective shareholder meetings as they await the FCC's approval of their merger. XM had a shareholder meeting scheduled for May 23, with Sirius execs assembling on May 20, suggesting the two don’t expect the matter to be resolved at least until the end of next month. The FCC is reviewing concerns that analysts believe include "public interest" issues such as pricing of the service, which would effectively have no competition on the satellite radio market.
Last month's approval from the Justice Department antitrust division saw the deal come closer to fruition. Since then, the final ruling left to the FCC was made more complex as state attorneys general from Connecticut, Maryland, Ohio and Washington wrote to the FCC, urging it to consider adding conditions to the deal that would allow new satellite radio providers to enter the market and ensure hardware manufacturers for the existing service are likewise free to compete.
Analysts believe the FCC will make a ruling, with conditions, sometime in June or perhaps late in May. [via The Washington Post]