April 30 - 4:30pm EDT   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. [full story]

April 30 - 3:55pm EDT   Sirius and XM today said they would continue their merger agreement indefinitely. The two satellite radio operators say they will continue to extend their agreement on a recurring two-week basis until the US government completes its decision on the proposed merger or else one of the companies decides to back out of the deal. Neither company can back out until the May 15th date set with an earlier agreement struck in February. [full story]

April 29 - 1:10pm EDT   Three of Logitech's networked music hubs -- the Squeezebox, Squeezebox Duet and the Transporter -- will soon gain direct support for Sirius' Internet Radio service, the latter company has announced. Using a Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection, owners will be able to select from over 80 different stations, including talk programming such as Howard Stern and NFL Radio. More critically, the support will come as a software update, and will be controllable away from a hub or a computer, via remote. [full story]

April 25 - 4:45pm EDT   Sirius sent a prototype Starmate 5 satellite radio receiver to the FCC for testing, revealing some images as well as specs. Other than the color difference of an otherwise identical body, it's not clear how the Starmate 5 differs from the current Starmate 4. One hint as to a unique feature is mention of either an XM or Sirius radio signal used in testing in a memo between a member of the testing firm and FCC authorization staff. [full story]

April 21 - 3:15pm EDT   Pioneer has started the week today with introductions for three high-end AVIC navigators. The DVD-equipped F900BT and Premier F90BT, as well as the CD-only F700BT, all offer in-dash mapping on a 5.8-inch wide touchscreen and support comparatively advanced GPS features such as Traffic Message Channel and support, an advanced voice command system, and text-to-speech to read out street names. Each, however, is built just as much for media playback: any can read discs with DivX, and MPEG-4 video as well as AAC, MP3, and WMA audio, while 2GB of built-in memory as well as slots for both SD cards and USB that provide both audio and video support from flash storage. Both ... [full story]

April 9 - 4:05pm EDT   The proposed merger of the United States' two major satellite radio networks may finally be nearing completion, FCC filings show. Following an initial meeting with FCC chairman Kevin Martin in late March, records indicate that Sirius and XM Radio representatives have continued to speak regularly with Martin and other Commission officials, seeking some way of accelerating the last step in the merger's approval. The corporations already have authorization from the Department of Justice. [full story]

March 28 - 3:10pm EDT   XM and Sirius are putting pressure on the Federal Communications Commission for a quick merger approval, legal documents show. A filing submitted to the FCC by an XM lawyer shows that counsel for both XM and Sirius visited the FCC on Wednesday, and discussed matters not only with chairman Kevin Martin, but his chief of staff and senior legal advisor. The filing was required by FCC regulations, and is likely meant to ensure that all lobbying efforts are above-board. [full story]

March 24 - 11:05pm EDT   The US Federal Justice Department today approved the highly controversial XM-Sirius merger, with some in the industry claiming that despite over 10 years of rebellious behavior against the FCC, the decision will grant monopoly status to the two companies. Just over a month ago, the two satellite radio content providers had officially announced the desire to merge, which many Sirius shareholders voted to approve. [full story]

March 24 - 3:40pm EDT   The proposed merger between Sirius and XM took a major step forward today with tentative approval by Department of Justice. The government agency's ruling notes that the threat of a monopoly isn't likely as their satellite radio services compete against many other formats besides themselves, including iPods and HD Radio. A combined entity would have no chance in the market if it tried to raise prices, the Department said. The statement also dismisses claims by HD Radio that a merged Sirius and XM would exclude competing technology from car stereos and other equipment. [full story]

March 21 - 12:30pm EDT   The FCC is indeed moving closer to a decision on the merger of Sirius and XM Radio, according to the group's chairman. Kevin Murphy is cited by Reuters as saying that draft documents are being put together, which will outline the choices the FCC can make on particular details of the merger. "I have asked the staff, after we've gotten all the final information that we needed, to be doing drafts, and when there were issues outstanding to do a range of options for us," he states. [full story]

March 20 - 4:15pm EDT   The Federal Communications Commission is in the midst of producing the approval for the long-delayed merger between Sirius and XM, says analyst Blair Levin of the financial group Stifel Nicolaus. Levin cites "rumblings" within the FCC which point to the US government body already in the midst of writing an approval for the union of the two satellite radio providers. No clues are given as to the proximity of a deal or whether there will be conditions attached, though Levin warns that a combined company may be required to lease access to other companies to avoid monopoly concerns. [full story]

February 29 - 1:40pm EST   SIRIUS and XM today said they would extend their merger agreement, ensuring that the union of the two satellite radio providers remains on the table. The extension prevents an existing deal from ending in March and bars either company from voluntarily backing out of the proposed merger between the two networks until May 1st. Neither company has revealed whether it will remain committed to the merger if the new agreement expires before official approval from both the Department of Justice and the FCC. [full story]

February 26 - 10:45am EST   Catering to the highest-end home theater enthusiasts who want a central location for all their media, Sony today launched its new NHS-130C rack system. The system is designed to pipe Blu-ray and other 1080p HD videos around as many as 13 individual zones and can supply a primary zone, such as the living room, with 7.1-channel surround audio. The device also focuses heavily on music with a 160GB hard drive to store music in a central location, a SIRIUS satellite radio tuner, and an in-wall iPod dock that uses just one cradled Apple player to supply music to the entire home. [full story]

February 18 - 2:55pm EST   The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) today urged the the Federal Communications Commission to block satellite radio providers Sirius and XM from offering local broadcasting, hoping to claim an edge for terrestrial radio in the event that the proposed merger between Sirius and XM is completed. A recent filing by NAB to the FCC points out that both Sirius and XM have an alleged record of ‘misbehavior’ in adopting the FCC’s rules and should be prevented from taking this abuse to local stations: both Sirius and XM have admitted to unauthorized or misused antennas and repeaters, according to the NAB's claims. [full story]

January 25 - 4:20pm EST   The highly-anticipated Sirius and XM merger may be approved as early as the end of the month, according to an analyst from research group Briefing. The professional quotes an unspecified source who expects government approval of a merger between the two satellite radio providers by the end of January, leaving just six days for the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission to authorize the deal. While unverified, the claim echoes statements by FCC head Kevin Martin, who expects a decision before spring. [full story]