Difference Between XM and Sirius

XM vs Sirius

XM and Sirius are the two commercially available options for satellite radio and they offer services that are quite similar to each other. They both have their own receivers which cannot be used to tune in to the competing brand’s offerings. They both offer a great selection of music stations on a wide variety of genres and talk radio that is only available on satellite radio. The only difference between these two is in the pricing. XM offers 122 channels at only $9.95 a month while Sirius only has 120 channels and charges $12.95 every month.

The price difference comes from the statistical multiplexing technology used by XM which provides more bandwidth to their channels. Though the additional bandwidth might be true, there is really no general consensus whether it results to better sound quality overall, which is what Sirius claims. Most people notice no difference in the sound quality but there has been no scientific study done to put this to rest.

The great advantage of Sirius is that they do not charge extra for those who often listens to their favorite channels over the Internet. XM charges for this feature, which brings the price to right about even if you really like listening over the internet. Sirius also offers two NPR stations which are national syndications of hundreds of public radio stations. XM does not offer any NPR stations. As a result of the price difference, XM holds a much larger share of the satellite radio market with an estimated 2 million subscribers all over the US and Canada.

This comparison really holds very little weight as of today due to the merger that started on February of 2007 and was successfully completed July of 2008. The new company is now called ‘Sirius XM’ and has become the only provider of satellite radio. This was quite controversial as they have become a monopoly on a specific industry which is usually not allowed by the government.

Summary:
1. XM and Sirus are two satellite radio providers
2. XM has more channels and is cheaper compared to Sirius
3. Sirius claims superior sound quality over XM
4. Sirius offers free listening over the Internet while it costs extra at XM
5. Sirius has two NPR stations while XM has none
6. XM has a greater market share compared to Sirius
7. XM and Sirius completed a merger in the middle of 2008

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