The recently merged satellite radio company Sirius XM faces a problem in that, while its content is outstanding, it is difficult to get subscribers to understand the benefit of the product without actually trying it for a significant period. Unlike commercial radio, there are no 20-minute blocks of advertising; but also, unlike free Internet radio stations, Sirius XM boasts some of the best disk jockeys, artist interviews, famous on-air personalities (e.g. Oprah Winfrey, Howard Stern, Jamie Foxx), and special events programming, including most major sports.
I have been a Sirius subscriber for more than three years, and I find the medium to be indispensible. I could live without TV, but not satellite radio. I’m also amazed at how many people have tried it only to give it up. In my experience, most of those folks tried XM, not Sirius. However, given the recent merger, the new branded product sounds much more XM that Sirius, in my opinion. If you haven’t listened to both then you wouldn’t understand what I’m talking about, but I could definitely tell the difference in the attitude, in the way the content is approached. Still, the new product is a billion times better than terrestrial radio.
The problem is that, because satellite radio is such a unique product, it is difficult to convey its benefits without experiencing it. Further, given the worldwide recession, fewer cars are being purchased that already come with satellite radio installed – usually such vehicles come with several free months to expose potential customers to the product.
However, given the uniqueness of the iPhone, there is the possibility for a solution that involves Wifi. Sirius XM already offers a sophisticated online application, whereby subscribers can use a username and password to log on and listen to most music stations and personalities, but not most special events programming. The advent of the iPhone, which is really the world’s first handheld computer, means that Sirius XM radio is fully portable outside of the car, wherever there is wireless Internet (don’t get me started on the Sirius Stilleto, everyone who I know who has tried the product either said that it had reception problems burned out after only a short period). Sirius XM’s marketing goal should be to use iPhone and Wifi technology to increase product trials and ultimately convert these trial customers into paying ones.
So why isn’t there a Sirius XM app yet for the iPhone? I have no idea.
Filed under: New media
