Homogenized radio stations bottle up growth

HOMOGENIZED RADIO STATIONS BOTTLE UP GROWTH
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune, AUTHOR: Phil Rosenthal]
Visiting Chicago last week, Mel Karmazin reflected on radio stations his companies once owned here and, by extension, the whole industry. While he was an advocate of radio consolidation that followed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 -- "Strictly for business reasons. No one asked me if it was good for consumers" -- he blames then-rival Clear Channel for changing the business by clustering station management and sales, which would become the industry standard. "It totally homogenized radio ... and, surprise, surprise, the revenue was affected," Karmazin said. "That's why you're seeing terrestrial radio not growing. Karmazin also said he will sue the Federal Communications Commission if it does not approve the merger of Sirius and XM Satellite Radio. He said it would not create a monopoly of the satellite market but instead a stronger competitor in a crowded field of audio delivery.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/chi-sun_phil_1111nov11...

* Sirius CEO Karmazin to FCC: I'll Sue!
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6499829.html?rssid=193

* FTC Drops XM Satellite Radio Investigation
XM announced on Friday that the Federal Trade Commission closed an investigations into XM’s marketing and customer-service practices.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6499364.html?rssid=193