Karmazin shoots down XM-Sirius
merger rumor
The
New York Post reported yesterday that satellite radio’s two major
players, XM and Sirius, had been discussing a possible merger. The rumors
are completely false according to Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin, who said
yesterday he had no idea where the gossip originated. During an earnings
conference call yesterday morning, Karmazin told analysts that he had not
spoken to anyone at XM. The Post’s report said that although a merger
would create a monopoly in the segment, XM and Sirius were hoping the
Federal Communications Commission would consider satellite radio part of
the broader industry delivering music and other content through mobile
devices. Karmazin said that even if the rumors were true, he didn't see
the FCC granting such an exception.
E-ad promises tsunami-related travel discount
Companies all over the world
have tried to raise money for victims of last month’s tsunami tragedy.
Millennium International Travels, a Madison Ave. travel agent, is trying
to make money off of it. The company advertised an extremely poor-taste "Special
Tsunami Fares" via email. The ad even features a picture of people
fleeing a huge wave. A Millennium official, who chose to remain anonymous,
told the New York Daily News that Michigan-based marketing firm
Wizie.Com distributed the message on
Millennium’s behalf without approval. Understandably, Wizie.Com is
denying responsibility. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines was outraged
over the inappropriate, unauthorized use of its logo in the email. The
airline has donated water, money and services to the relief effort and has
discounted fares to tsunami-devastated areas for the benefit of victims’
families.
Report: Cable modems & revenue are rising
In the phone companies-cable broadband war, cable
continues to prosper. A new report from In-Stat finds that cable modem
subscriptions and revenue in North America have grown tremendously since
2003 and predicts that the trend will continue.
North American cable companies have more than doubled their average
revenue per subscriber in the past five years. According to In-Stat, the
number of worldwide subscribers increased from 31 million in 2003 to 42
million in 2004, with North America leading the way. In-Stat credits the
success of the cable industry in North America to the bundling packages
cable operators offer. Yankee Group predicts that the number of U.S.
subscribers will reach 35.8 million in 2008 compared with 19.9 million in
2004. Cable modems are more popular than DSL in North America, but DSL is
more popular than cable in other parts of the world.
Wanna
buy a missile launcher? Check eBay
It
has been said that you can find just about anything on eBay. Boy, is it
true. Richard
Moore, a Russian military vehicle specialist of Cambridgeshire, Britain,
tried to sell a deactivated Soviet-era missile on eBay. Officials from the
site asked him to remove the item for breaking the site’s rules.
Nope, it wasn't the missile that was the problem. Moore was in
violation because he listed the missile alongside its launcher instead of
as a separate item. The missile was just a shell, but the fully
operational launcher that accompanied it is still for sale for $35,660.
Selling demilitarized missiles on the site is acceptable because they are
considered museum pieces. Ammunition, replica guns or firearms cannot be
sold on eBay.
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