I was saddened to hear Hugh Panero will leave XM Satellite Radio.
Yesterday’s announcement gave no details of his plans and the company didn’t have any more information when asked.
I’m not surprised to hear he’s leaving, though, given the recent merger plans. Under the proposal, Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin would serve as CEO of a combined company and XM Board Chairman Gary Parsons would be chairman of the company, leaving no role for Panero. When the merger was first announced, they said Panero would stay until any deal was closed.
Nate Davis, now XM president/COO, will serve as president and interim CEO; he was brought in after a board member left, citing concerns about XM’s spending, and the company began to miss its earnings guidance for several consecutive quarters.
