Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2003 00:02:29 -0400
Reply-To: caverat <caverat@ATTBI.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: caverat <caverat@ATTBI.COM>
Subject: Re: Free Sirius satellite radio system
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> >If 10% of the 220 million cars in the country get this, this industry
will
> >be a huge success and I will be able to retire early.
>
> Aha.... I thought something stank of infomercial...
>
I am not employed by or affiliated with either of the satellite radio
companies or any of their auto manufacturer, receiver manufacturer, or any
other business partners. I pay for two subscriptions (second one is $6.99 a
month) and because of the potential of this product and the research I have
done into how the satellite radio, auto manufacturers, and receiver
manufacturers are working together on this to (IMO) essentially ensure this
industry will ultimately become successful I have become a stockholder
hoping that this will become the Microsoft or AOL opportunity that I missed
ten years ago. Word-of-mouth helps to sell good products, and I enjoy
hearing the positive feedback from friends of mine that I have clued in on
this unpublished free system deal who have decided to try it out for
themselves and have become subscribers (three of them ended up getting a
second radio). Most of them weren't interested, but the ones that decided
to get it are very pleased with it and are helping to spread the word also.
One day one of your friends will begin to tell you about this neat new thing
called satellite radio that they just got. I hope in a few weeks some of
the listmembers who decided to go for this free equipment offer will let us
know what they think of the service. One listmember and current subscriber
that did comment gave it a 5 out of 5 rating. My initial intent all along
has to been to make fellow Vanagon listmembers aware of this unpublished and
unadvertised free equipment option and to make more people aware of this new
technology so they can decide for themselves whether or not it has a place
in their van.
My understanding of the master plan is for this to become standard equipment
in new autos over the next few years in order to ensure mass distribution.
It wasn't too long ago that a CD player was an option in a car. It is
standard in most new vehicles today. Satellite radio is the next planned
step. It is already standard and/or factory/dealer installed equipment in a
few specific models this year, and next year more models will have it
standard, and the year after that, even more. Satellite radio is here to
stay, the only real question is how big will it become over the next 5-10
years. The small satellite TV dishes that made that industry take off
didn't even come out until 1994, and look how big that industry has gotten
in the last nine years. I believe that history will show that the year 2003
is to satellite radio what 1994 was to satellite TV.
Time now for the infomercial:
From VW - "Volkswagen of America, Inc., which also encompasses Audi of
America, today announced it has signed distribution agreements with Sirius
Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI) and XM Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: XMSR), to
offer Volkswagen and Audi customers in the United States a choice of
satellite radio services in the coming years. XM and Sirius are each
broadcasting a satellite radio service, offering 100 channels of digital
audio entertainment coast to coast for a low monthly fee. Specific vehicle
installation plans and timing will be announced separately by Volkswagen and
Audi in the future. "
From XM and GM - "Accelerating one of the fastest-ever technology rollouts
in its history, GM will offer XM Satellite Radio on 44 of 57 GM models,
representing more than three-quarters of GM's fleet. In November 2001, GM
became the first automaker to offer XM as a factory-installed option on 2002
Cadillac DeVilles and Sevilles. For the 2003 model year, GM expanded to 25
car, truck and SUV models, and Cadillac was the first division to offer XM
across its entire product portfolio. At the start of the 2004 model year, XM
will be available on 44 GM models"
From Mercedes Benz - "SIRIUS satellite radio will be available in the fall
at Mercedes-Benz dealers nationwide, across all models of C-Class, E-Class,
S-Class, M-Class, CL-Class, SL-Class, and CLK-class vehicles. Nearly all
2004-model Mercedes-Benz vehicles will be pre-wired in production for the
satellite radio system, and the fully integrated audio system will
incorporate one new mode button marked "SAT" accessing over 100 channels of
commercial-free music and entertainment. Customers at Mercedes-Benz
dealerships will be able to choose from a variety of multi-year packages for
SIRIUS, including incorporating the SIRIUS service into vehicle financing or
lease payments."
From Audi - "Beginning with the entire line-up of A4 (A4, A4 Avant, A4
Cabriolet); A6 (A6, A6 Avant); S4 (S4, S4 Avant); and allroad quattro
vehicles in June, all Audi vehicles will be pre-wired for SIRIUS, enabling
consumers to get a SIRIUS receiver installed at Audi dealers nationwide. The
all-aluminum A8L will be available with SIRIUS in Q4 2003, followed by the
TT Coupe and TT Roadster. Audi customers who purchase a SIRIUS system will
receive at least three months of free service with no activation fee."
From BMW - "All 2003 model year BMW 3 Series sedan and coupe, 5 Series
sedan, and X5 vehicles equipped with an in-dash CD radio are compatible with
SIRIUS receivers. BMW customers who commit to a one-year SIRIUS service
subscription and activate their receivers at a BMW center will receive two
months free SIRIUS service plus free activation."
From XM and Acura - "The all-new model year 2004 Acura TL will include XM
Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: XMSR) as standard equipment, Acura announced
yesterday at the New York International Auto Show. "As XM marches to the one
million subscriber mark later this year, the all-new 2004 Acura TL
represents another key expansion of XM into the great family of Acura and
Honda vehicles. According to American Honda, it will expand the
availability of XM-ready radios to additional Honda and Acura models during
the 2005 model year and into the future."
From Ford - "Sirius Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI), the premier satellite
radio broadcaster, and Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) announced today a
long-term agreement confirming their relationship. Ford, Lincoln, Mercury,
Jaguar, Volvo and Land Rover have announced plans to begin offering Sirius
satellite radio systems on an exclusive basis in select vehicles, with
Sirius product launches planned for the 2003 calendar year. Mazda and Aston
Martin are expected to announce their plans at a later date. We have been
working in close cooperation with Sirius to provide a satellite radio
solution that delivers high levels of quality and customer satisfaction. We
believe that this is the most significant feature addition to the radio
since the CD," said Cary Wilson, Director Electrical & Electronic Systems
Engineering at Ford"
From Chrysler "Beginning this fall, Chrysler Group customers can tune into a
new listening experience while driving as Sirius Satellite Radio (Nasdaq:
SIRI) launches as a Mopar product offering in 2003 model year cars, trucks,
SUV's and minivans.
Want it in your boat? - "Genmar Holdings Inc., the world's largest
recreational boat builder, have partnered to offer SIRIUS Satellite Radio as
a standard feature in all CD-head-unit equipped boats throughout Genmar's 16
boat brands. Under this agreement, each boat will be equipped with a
watertight Clarion Marine AM/FM/CD/SIRIUS head unit, featuring a direct
digital interface to a Clarion Marine SIRIUS tuner. All premium-model boats
from Genmar's 16 brands will also come bundled with one year of the SIRIUS
service. SIRIUS equipped Genmar boat brands are among the best names in
boating and include: Aquasport, Carver, Champion, Crestliner, Four Winns,
Genmar by Zodiac, Glastron, Hydra-Sports, Larson, Lowe, Lund, Ranger,
Seaswirl, Stratos, Triumph and Wellcraft boats. Genmar estimates that
approximately 20,000 2004 boats will be equipped with the Clarion SIRIUS
system along with one year of service."
Do you own a plane? - "Sirius Satellite Radio is excited to partner with
Avionics Innovations to introduce satellite radio to the aviation
community," said Walter Kerner, Senior Director, Special Markets Sirius
Satellite Radio. Avionics Innovations experience in manufacturing in-flight
audio products and its large dealer network serving the general and business
aviation communities are a natural complement to our premium onboard
entertainment programming."
"Avionics Innovations is proud to offer Sirius Satellite Radio to our
dealers and customers nationwide," said Bob Pasch, Vice President, Avionics
Innovations. "We expect the Sirius system to be a big hit with private and
business pilots and their passengers."
How about your home stereo? - "SIRIUS is bringing its 100 streams of music
and entertainment to listeners at home with products that fit perfectly into
home audio systems. This true in-home solution encompasses a choice of
dedicated home receivers for satellite radio to be offered by Kenwood and by
Audiovox, and are expected to be available mid 2003. These new home
receivers incorporate all of the unique benefits of satellite radio,
including displays that show listeners useful information such as artist
name, song title, channel name, and category. The units can be easily
operated using a wireless remote and include audio presets and RCA left and
right audio jacks for easy integration into a consumer's existing home
stereo system."
Don't forget the malls, gyms, or apartment buildings - "SIRIUS also
announced some exciting new initiatives to bring its service to commercial
markets such as shopping malls, apartment buildings, health and fitness
clubs, and for custom home installations and multi-zone users. A multi-zone
receiver allows listeners to tune in and listen to any of the 100 SIRIUS
streams in different locations. This is an ideal application for different
stores within a shopping mall, for multi-zone home audio set-ups and for
multiple dwelling building such as apartment complexes."
Most people won't pay for it, but enough will to make the business
profitable so it is coming anyway, whether you like the concept or not.
caverat
89 westy
Satellite radio fan
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