‘Fast start’ out of gate for XM Satellite Radio should serve as ’...
“Fast start” out of gate for XM Satellite Radio should serve as “case study” in risk management that “telematics providers would be wise to emulate,” Forrester Research report said. Report praised XM’s 3-pronged strategy for “outmaneuvering” Sirius Satellite Radio…
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and putting company ahead of schedule to meet year-end goal of signing up 350,000 subscribers. While Sirius invested in 3 elliptical-orbiting satellites and 8-chip receiver chipset designed from scratch, Forrester said, XM went for simpler 2-satellite system and chipset adapted from 2 existing designs. Moreover, report said, “one way to manage risk is to share it with key partners,” such as General Motors, which has 22% equity stake in XM and “wants very much” for it to succeed. Forrester also gave XM high marks for creating “hybrid” business model that relies both on ad and subscription revenue streams. As result, report said, XM maintains $3 lower monthly subscription fee than Sirius “while keeping its business model options open.”