Clearchannel to Congress "Please save us from ourselves"

[Tyek]

So who do you think stands to lose the most if satellite companies Sirius and MX merge?

If you guessed Clear Channel, the nation's biggest radio station owner, you’d be right. After all, the expansion of satellite could put an end to the already struggling business of terrestrial radio....and that has Clear Channel shaking in it big, evil boots.

So how is the Clear One reacting to the Department of Justice’s approval of the merger? By demanding that satellite clean up their act so they can’t be edgier than what regular, boring ol’ radio has to offer. In other words, "if the FCC is gonna regulate us, then they should regulate them too!"

But the problem with that theory is that terrestrial radio is a free offering to anyone (like network TV), where satellite is a paid service (like cable TV…where there’s boobies and f-words).

Never one to adhere to logic, Clear Channel has asked the Federal Communications Commission to force the soon-to-be-merged XM/Sirius satellite radio companies to obey the agency's indecency laws as a condition for union just like they do.


"One of the primary potential dangers to free, over-the-air radio posed by this merger is siphoning popular, including 'edgy' content, with consequent loss of advertising revenue," Clear Channel wrote to the FCC on March 11. "That potential harm is mitigated if broadcast decency rules were to apply to the merged entity. There is no constitutional bar to such a condition."

Clear Channel's filing represents a rare example in which a major broadcaster has asked the Commission to expand, rather than restrict, its authority over alleged indecent fare. Why? Because it benefits Clear Channel for satellite radio to be less interesting and fail.

And what exactly does Clear Channel mean when they refer to "edgy" content?

Why, former cash-cow-turned-biggest-rival Howard Stern, of course. The man who single handedly brought the radio world to its knees when he defected for satellite, but was slapped repeatedly with fines during his past reign over regular radio.

So to try to keep themselves in the game Clear Channel has been asking the FCC to add conditions to the merger that would directly benefit it, including further relaxing the FCC's limits on how many radio stations an entity can own in big markets, and requiring a united XM/Sirius to integrate HD Radio technology into their satellite receivers (Clear Channel is an HD Radio investor and booster). They even had the balls to demand that the satellite not be allowed to solicit ads from local businesses and that Clear Channel is given a 5% stake in the company! Plus they want the FCC give at least 50 percent of the available satellite spectrum to a new third party (guess who would own that!?!?)!

Now if that ain’t unfair practice, I don’t know what is! I call shenanigans!

The funniest part of this was brought up this week in a best of Opie and Anthony segment. Years ago when XM was starting, Clearchannel and other radio owners happily took XM money and advertised them on their channels. Year later after failing to recognize the future competition they want congress to save them?

[Boogahz]

If XM was forced to edit content, I would not listen to it anymore. I appreciate not having to listen to content that is not geared towards someone 11 years old.

[Sylvus]

I appreciate not having to listen to content that is not geared towards someone 11 years old.

Double negative!

[Midnyte_Ragebringer]

If XM was forced to edit content, I would not listen to it anymore. I appreciate not having to listen to content that is not geared towards someone 11 years old.

Word to the third.

[Boogahz]

I appreciate not having to listen to content that is not geared towards someone 11 years old.

Double negative!

bah, I was still ingesting caffeine