Sirrius Satellite Radio

The Sirius Radio streams are broadcast from three satellites in an elliptical geosynchronous orbit above North America. Digital satellite systems usually make use of a very small dish which can be installed anywhere on the consumer’s property with a line-of-sight to an orbiting satellite. Sirius Radio has exclusive satellite radio rights to National Public Radio, carrying two separate streams. The deal with NPR was the first high-profile deal entered into by Sirius.

The National Basketball Association has reached a multi-year deal with Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. to expand radio broadcasts of professional basketball games. Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio (DARS) service in the United States that provides 65 streams (channels) of music and 55 streams of sports, news and entertainment. XM Canada said it will have shipped 100,000 receivers to Canadian retailers before Christmas.

XM has signed deals with 60 per cent of car makers, including the biggest, General Motors of Canada Ltd., to pre-install XM receivers in GM vehicles. XM Satellite Radio provides digital programming directly from three satellites in geostationary orbit above the equator. XM Satellite Radio NASDAQ: XMSR is a satellite radio (DARS) service in the United States based in Washington, DC and controlled by News Corporation's DirecTV, General Motors, American Honda, Hughes Electronics, and several private investment groups.

Audio channels on XM Radio are digitally compressed using the aacPlus codec from Coding Technologies for most channels, and the AMBE codec from Digital Voice Systems for some voice channels. Digital radio technology offers many advantages, opening the doors for future HD radio features as built in digital radio recorders, allowing you to record and play back your favorite music, news and weather, as well as subscription services. If your brand-name stereo isn't compatible with satellite radio, or if you have a factory stereo system, you can still use a dedicated car satellite radio.

In the US market, there's two players: XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Sirius and XM are the two major satellite radio providers available in the USA Car manufacturers have been installing satellite radio receivers in some models for a few years now. With satellite, or digital radio, you get near-CD quality sound.