Like Sirius, XM is talking to Apple about the possibility of including satellite radio on the iPod — with a caveat.
“They’ve said on these convergence issues they’re happy where they are,” XM President/CEO Hugh Panero said, referring to conversations with Apple head Steve Jobs.
“There’s a dialog going. We’ll see what happens,” Panero said in a call with analysts in releasing XM’s Q4 financials.
Other news from XM: Plans are progressing for the release of its third satellite next week. The launch moves back another week if there are weather problems, said Panero.
The satellite will take the place of one of XM’s two original Boeing satellites, which have a shorter-than-expected lifespan due to solar array problems.
XM says its churn rate continues to drop and is now averaging 1.2% a month. However for the fourth quarter it was 2.5%, down from 2.9% in the previous quarter. Most of the churn is what the satcaster calls “involuntary,” referring to customers cut off for lack of payment.
XM Looks at iPod, Too; Monthly Churn Average 1.2%
XM Looks at iPod, Too; Monthly Churn Average 1.2%
