Canadian XM Satellite Firm to Spend $100 Million; Begins Repeater Process

Canadian Satellite Radio has budgeted $100 million over seven years in Canadian programming and infrastructure. The company, a Canadian-owned partnership between XM Satellite Radio and Toronto entrepreneur John Bitove, is one of three applicants approved by the government to provide pay radio in Canada.
CSR is spending much of the money on building a terrestrial repeater network, according to the Toronto Globe and Mail. Asked how many repeaters would be needed, President/CEO Stephen Tapp told the paper that one repeater could service a smaller city with a lower skyline, such as Ottawa, while several repeaters could re-transmit the satellite signal for a larger city such as Toronto.
“While we are still evaluating … the eight Canadian channels requested by the (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission), the pressure from retailers and automotive manufacturers to commence service this fall has resulted in us beginning our major investments now,” said Bitove in a statement.
CSR has hired a consulting firm to test coverage patterns and performance levels to determine where repeaters should be sited. The company also plans to build studios, according to the report.