YOUR MOM'S BOX

Sirius XM Prepares For Bankruptcy

2009-02-10T15:12:00.000-08:00

Per the NY Times via Orbitcast

BREAKING!!!

2008-09-30T08:22:00.001-07:00

Per Greg and Tony, they have re-signed. More to come.

Norton, btw is not signed.

Boooooo

From FMQB

Sirius XM Begins Cross-Platform Programming

September 30, 2008

The merging of Sirius and XM continues, as content from one satcaster has now begun appearing on the other. XM's Web site is now touting Howard Stern's Howard 100 & 101 channels as part of its programming. Meanwhile, Opie & Anthony are now appearing on Sirius' Web site, with "The Virus" as its channel 197. O&A are also sticking with the merged satcaster, as the duo revealed this morning that they inked a new deal two weeks ago.

Also making a cross-platform appearance from XM to Sirius are Oprah & Friends (Sirius 195), XM Public Radio (Sirius 196), NHL Home Ice (Sirius 208), The PGA TOUR Network (Sirius 209). Sirius channels now available on XM are Playboy Radio (XM 99), Martha Stwerat Living Radio (XM 103), Sirius NASCAR Radio (XM 104) and Sirius NFL Radio (XM 105).

In other Sirius XM news, the company has set a new team of executives for its After Market division. Bob Law, VP/GM of the division, announced the appointments in a bulletin to employees yesterday. The After Market team will contribute to subscriber and financial growth. The new executive team is made up of: VP of direct to consumer sales & marketing Matt Downing, VP of product marketing Sean Gibbons, VP of After Market operations Todd Goodnight and VP of CE manufacturing Denzil Miller. They join Mike Roberts (VP of retail distribution) and Tom Steckbeck (VP of special markets), who were appointed earlier this month.

Here, But Wait What

2008-09-30T05:41:00.000-07:00

Well, It's September 30, 4 days before the boys' contract expires. No word on the contract, but Opie and and Anthony are being promoted as part of Sirius' "The Best Of XM" Package.

As you can see here.

Apparently the production work on display is what Steve and the staff were fighting about on-air on Friday.

There Is Hope

2008-09-09T13:29:00.001-07:00

Multiple sources today reported that the Virus, Home of Opie and Anthony, would be offered as part of an "XM On Sirius" package to begin on October 6.

With all due respect to Ron and Fez, Noon to 3, I don't think this would offer much if The Boys weren't going to be on 202.

Sarah Palin, Come On Down

2008-08-30T13:28:00.000-07:00

Hopefully, Opie and Anthony will pick up this one:

Straight Talk Excess: John McCain called wife "cunt", "trollop"

John McCain called his wife Cindy a "cunt" in front of at least five witnesses on the campaign trail in 1992, according to Cliff Schecter's new book:

Three reporters from Arizona, on the condition of anonymity, also let me in on another incident involving McCain's intemperateness. In his 1992 Senate bid, McCain was joined on the campaign trail by his wife, Cindy, as well as campaign aide Doug Cole and consultant Wes Gullett. At one point, Cindy playfully twirled McCain's hair and said, "You're getting a little thin up there." McCain's face reddened, and he responded, "At least I don't plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you cunt." McCain's excuse was that it had been a long day. If elected president of the United States, McCain would have many long days. [The Real McCain, PoliPoint Press, 2008.]

see also

HERE

Uh, Oh

2008-08-30T10:41:00.000-07:00

So, I was listening to the early morning Saturday replay on 202 today, and on comes an announcement saying that 202 would/could be preempted for College Football on Saturdays in the fall, given the demand on bandwidth for such things.

E Lo wouldn't have let that happen

Cone Of Silence

2008-08-25T09:12:00.000-07:00

What we know is that Opie and Anthony met with counterparts at Sirius XM last Wednesday at the end of the XM show.

As Opie stated, "We can't keep Hoo Hoo waiting".

The next day, the boys reported that they were under a Cone of Silence and that "our Jew" (Bob Eatman) is now negotiating with "their Jew" (presumably Scott Greenstein of Sirius)

Se e Here

A Hint Of Positivity

2008-08-19T05:33:00.000-07:00

In the "Official" Sirius XM press release concerning Chris Mad Dog Russo, the boilerplate at the end foreshadowed the fact that Sirius XM considers Opie and Anthony to be a part of the futah:

"SIRIUS XM Radio has exclusive content relationships with an array of
personalities and artists, including Howard Stern, Oprah, Martha Stewart,
Jimmy Buffett, Elvis, Jamie Foxx, Barbara Walters, Frank Sinatra, Opie &
Anthony, The Grateful Dead, Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tom
Petty, and Bob Edwards. SIRIUS XM Radio is the leader in sports programming as
the Official Satellite Radio Partner of the NFL, Major League Baseball,
NASCAR, NHL, and PGA Tour, and broadcasts major college sports."



That can't be bad...

The Actor Named Greg Hughes

2008-08-18T17:13:00.000-07:00

Advised listeners on Mondee that talks with Srius XM are "ongoing" and "active"

"Exploratory"

2008-08-07T06:36:00.000-07:00

According to Greg Hughes, the actor who plays Opie on the Opie and Anthony Show, heard on XM Satellite Radio,

Super Agent Bob Eatman has sent an "exploratory memo" to Sirius management to set the stage for further negotiations.

SA B. E. Backs Off YSP

2008-08-07T04:07:00.000-07:00

It appears that Super Agent Bob Eatman, after his call with Sirius XM's programming head, decided that saying that new terrestrial deals were in the wings probably isn't the way to go.

Tramslation: Mel wants exclusivity, so don't be encouraging to the little fellers in terrestrial.

Eatman made a point of backing off his terrestrial statements by speaking directly to a Philly reporter:

As for rumors that Opie & Anthony are returning to WYSP for a third tour of duty: "It's just rumor," the duo's agent, Robert Eatman, told me yesterday. Contract-renewal talks between O&A and Sirius XM Radio have begun, but he says he's had no talks with WYSP owner CBS. The radio trades on Tuesday quoted Eatman as saying on O&A's show that WYSP was in the mix, but Eatman thinks he misspoke. He's made no secret that he wants O&A back on terrestrial radio, but "they woke me up at 6 a.m.," he said.

The Bell Rings

2008-08-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

According to Super Agent Bob Eatman

on the Opie and Anthony show today, a conference call to begin discussions was scheduled for 2 pm eastern Tuesday with Sirius XM President of Entertainment & Sports Scott Greenstein.

FMQB has more.

According to Eatman, Sirius XM "loves you guys". More slick agent talk.
Eatman attributed the Citadel loss of stations to Citadel needing to save money. Eatman also surmised that terrestrial radio stations are cautious about the show, without knowing how strong Sirius XM will insist on satellite exclusivity. Eatman specifically stated the WYSP was waiting to see if exclusivity would prevail. "If [O&A] are able to be nonexclusive on Sirius XM, then they will want to have an agreement".

Eatman said he thought being on both platforms was best for The Boys.

But, that "we have an option to do what we want to do".

Clearly, the question of exclusivity is the key point.

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Replaced By Gray and Kluck? Holy Fuck

2008-08-03T03:56:00.000-07:00

The Boys are off in Grand Rapids MI, which apparently wants to save the $127 annual syndication fee (perhaps more than that).

Well not much more than that, really. Eric Logan disclosed in his exit interview on Thursday that Citadel was paying 55k for OandA in Buffalo, even though Opie had earlier left a strong suggestion that it was 75k.

At any rate. Grey and Kluck begin Monday:

Tune in to WKLQ-FM (107.3) from 6 to 10 a.m. and you'll hear a new early morning lineup. "The Opie and Anthony Show" is out, and the "Grey & Kluck Show" is in.

"Our show is the most aggressive thing on radio," said Michael Grey, 33, program director and morning co-host. "We are a guy station and will keep it local. There is a real hunger for a true West Michigan product."

He refers to the station's music as the "only reporting, true, active rock in the market" and said he worked hard to refocus KLQ's sound at the end of 2007.

Grey is an 11-year radio veteran at WGRD and WKLQ. and Kluck spent time at WIRX in Benton Harbor as well as WRKR in Kalamazoo before joining the new morning team at KLQ.

"The pace is crazy," Kluck, 28, said. "Our show will be loud and abrasive. We are going to try to be the most honest radio show in the market."

He thinks it is very cool to partner with Grey, who he laughingly says is "like the big brother I never wanted."

Another new addition at the station is Jay Deacon, who will host the afternoon drive from 2 to 7 p.m. Deacon was the program director and PM drive host for WRKR and also will fill the roles of assistant program director and digital media coordinator.

Sound like a couple of radio losers. "digital media coodinator"???? isn't that the guy who used to dub spots onto carts?

Mel On Bob Edwards

2008-08-01T06:15:00.001-07:00

Not much new, other than a clear statement that the 6.95 a la carte will allow a subscriber to chose the 50 channels that they want.

My list (don't laugh)

202
14
16
All baseball channels
Jimmy Buffett Channel on Sirius (the gehy)
The Grateful Dead Channel on Sirius (they have one, right?)
ESPN Radio
60's
70's
80's
90's
Fred
Ethel
Lucy
Deep Tracks
Top Tracks.
Howard 100 and 101
And, I still have 20 to go.

Mel On Stern

2008-07-31T05:45:00.000-07:00

This was less electric, but if you are looking for nuggets, listen away.

And here's a show rundown of Mel's visit, which consisted of the usual ass-kissing.

By way of example:

Mel said that the untold story is the impact that Howard had on making this whole thing happen. Howard said that he can't believe that he's not in the radio hall of fame. Some reverend was put in before him. He said that he doesn't care about the radio hall of fame but it's ridiculous that they don't just put him in.

yikes

A La Carte Explained

2008-07-30T12:56:00.000-07:00

Here's an excerpt from a longer piece in the LA Times (online) that attempts to explain the ala carte offerings, particularly in line with comments made by Mel Karmazin on O & A today:

There will be two a la carte offerings.

One for $6.99 a month will allow you to choose 50 Sirius channels from a subset of 100 Sirius channels (Sirius has more than 130); or 50 XM channels from a subset of 100 XM channels (XM has more than 170).
The other, for $14.99 a month, will allow you to pick 100 channels, with Sirius customers able to select from a company-determined "best of" XM's channels, and XM customers allowed to select from the "best of" Sirius channels.

Those programming selections haven't been released, but it's a good bet they'll include some exclusive content, such as XM's Major League Baseball broadcasts and channels featuring Oprah Winfrey and Bob Dylan. They likely will also include Sirius' National Football League broadcasts, NASCAR coverage and Howard Stern channels (he's so popular, he has two).

But for those options you'll need to buy a new radio that is capable of receiving individualized channel packages.

For customers who don't want to buy a new radio, there will be several other packages available within three months.

For $9.99 a month, customers will be able to choose either a "mostly music" package or a "news sports and talk" package. For $16.99, Sirius customers will get all their existing channels, plus the best of XM, and vice versa for XM customers. And finally, in a concession to FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin, the companies agreed to offer a family-friendly version of Sirius or XM channels (presumably without Stern or Opie & Anthony) for $11.95 a month. There will also be a family-friendly "best of" offering that will cost $14.99.

The timing of this is interesting, in the the rollout of a la carte is about the same time as the boys' contract expires. This suggests that time is of the essence to have them included.

FMQB On Mel's Visit To The Boys

2008-07-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

Read It Here

A separate article dealt with the boys' deal and where they fit in with Sirius XM Sattelite Radio

In short, FMQB reached the same conclusion as I did in my live blog of Mel's meeting/interview:

As important as you guys are, I had not had a conversation until I saw Eric [Logan] late in the afternoon and he told me there is a contract period coming up," explained Karmazin. "It's the first I heard of it and I know nothing about it and believe it or not, I don't even know what you guys make. I'm assuming that if in fact you guys want to stay and if in fact XM is obviously happy and wants you to stay, all I can do is facilitate and make sure there are conversations."

Broaching the subject of their dual broadcast deal that puts them on terrestrial radio for three hours a day, Karmazin said, "In a perfect world where I'm going to pay a good amount of money, it's going to be because the only way a subscriber can get it is on satellite radio."

In other words, Karmazin isn't going to hold up their deal to broadcast on both platforms, but they shouldn't expect to get paid like they would if they were exclusively on Sirius XM Radio.

Live Blog of Mel On The Virus

2008-07-30T05:49:00.000-07:00

Vos is asked to leave the studio when Mel gets here.

Mel due at 9:20 a.m. [perhaps later than that!]

The boys appears anxious.

The studio has been hosed down, with new signage, "Sirius XM"

The boys observe that Vos is too stupid to stay in the room.

No audience today, just the three boys.

They respond to Bubba The Love Maggott

XM Online bandwidth is getting crushed.

Logan is messaging to get Vos out of the studio.

He arrives.

Holy fuck do they sound nervous.

Mel calls out the NAB for being hyenas. It's a great ass busting.

"Hat's off to the head of the NAB"

No pink slips for the boys.

Mel calls them [O&A] "dicks"

Mel is a fan of ELo, and ELo would have had a job [that's funny]

Mel talks about making the boys sit out, and compliments them.

That old gag: "What time in the morning do you wake up and decide to fuck Mel Karmazin?"

Mel explains that Tom Chiusano didn't want them to be on Howard's station when they first came to NY.

The pests have been emailing Mel. oh boy...

oops he hasn't read "the contract" or XM research

Mel says he spoke to Logan about OA, and sounds surprised that there haven't been any discussions.

Mel now explains his problem with exclusive content being shared on CBS. Sounds like he is trying to talk them down in salary.

It doesn't sound that good, to be honest.

He explains why Bubba being on terrestrial is different, because they are dipshit markets.

It ends with a basic humminah humminah.

Mel doesn't want to pay them....

Confirmation from FMQB

2008-07-30T02:27:00.001-07:00

It looks like Mel Karmazin will be making rounds tomorrow on some of the Sirius XM Radio talk shows. Expect him to show up on Howard Stern's show as his first stop. Afterwards, fans of Opie & Anthony will be glad to know that the combined satcaster CEO will be appearing on their program during the 9am hour. With the duo's contract in limbo and approaching its renewal date, O&A fans should finally get the answers they have been looking for ever since the merger was announced.

Mel Karmazin to Be on OA Wednesday

2008-07-29T17:07:00.000-07:00

As stated here

http://www.musicradio77.com/wwwboard/messages/343140.html

More Lame Speculation

2008-07-29T13:34:00.001-07:00

Here

And Then What Happened?

2008-07-29T06:27:00.000-07:00

Here's where we will see if The Boys survive the merger between XM and Sirius.

If you don't know I'm talking about Opie and Anthony, then change the dial.

For starters, here's the Orbitcast posting

and also the FMQB Article