Did any other SIRIUS subscribers receive or open their letter yet???? Here's my reply.............

I have been a loyal subscriber since June 2005.

I just recently opened my letter from Sirius entitled "US Music Royalty Fee Important Information".

What a friggin' joke !

With my initial account in June 2005, I was permitted one free online account. I used it periodically, especially at work during the holidays (everyone loved the Christmas music). Ultimately, that one neat little perk was taken away.

Now I am required to pay an additional $1.98/month primary radio and $0.97/month per secondary radio. For me, that's an additional $3.92 per month or $47.04 per year for "Music Royalty Fees". This, too, is a crock of crap given the amount I'm already paying for the one primary and two secondary subscriptions.

I can really tell the merger between Sirius and XM really benefited everyone.....supposedly the merger would result in a minimization of costs due the the duplication of some duties; all I see is an increase in shareholder's accounts and a good ol' fashion screwin' to the subscribers that pay the bills!!!!!!!!!

I primarily listen to Howard Stern in the mornings on my way to work and then Bubba The Love Sponge in the evenings on my way home; other times it's FOX News or Road Dog Trucking. My wife listens to Enlighten nearly all the time. I also forgot to mention....I have Sirius in three vehicles, but there's only two drivers in this household. My 2007.5 Dodge RAM 3500 MegaCab has Sirius Radio OEM and is a pleasure vehicle that is used only on the weekends. Generally it's parked from Sunday evening to Friday morning.

I'm sure this email may or may not be read by anyone that genuinely gives a crap about a subscriber in southeastern KY with three accounts, but I really felt the need to vent this entire matter. In the future I see an increased use of the disc changers in all my vehicles. The additional $47 per year (each and every year) increase coupled with the removal of the once free online account now makes Sirius Radio a poor value in my opinion. Who would ever thought an I-Pod would wind up being competition for satellite radio ????

Expect my cancellation notification really soon on all three accounts.....

Gregory Brockman

 

Yep I hear you. I had two radios for just me, last year I got rid of one, and now the other is gone. They actually offered me a good deal to keep it at only $90/year for my primary, but still not worth it. I much prefer the Ipod. I had XM before, but still no change, never was very happy.

 

Thank RIAA (the folks that are bringing the law suits against downloaders) for the additional fees. It brought things to about $15 per month. I too have let my subscription expire.

Hal

 

I cancelled my XM account recently (might be going overseas for 12-18 months for a job) and 2 weeks later I got offered 3 months for 4.99/month or 1 year for $75. I called to activate the 3 month subscription and they added the 1 year for $75 at the end of it should I end up not going overseas. That makes 15 months for under $100 AFTER taxes and fees. I was pretty impressed with this. If I don't go overseas, I plan to still cancel my subscription again after the 15 months are over and wait to see if they offer me another deal.

Wait them out. You might be surprised at what they are willing to offer you to get you back as a subscriber. Memberships keep food on their table.

 

Yea I can see that. But my problem is, there stations seem to be getting worse and worse for music. So hard to actually find good music. My Iphone is free and has 1,500 songs that are good....

 

I cancelled mine...

 

As an XM subscriber I haven't gotten that letter yet. I'm generally displeased with the music channels at this point, but I still like the Fox News Radio.

The Jetta has Sirius, unfortunately they still can't merge the accounts between Sirius and XM, so I'm faced with opening a separate Sirius account for the wife's car in October.

 

i just renewed my plan with sirius...live in rural midwest and not a whole lot of vareity besides country stations and the CARP went down for some unforsaken reason so i was going nuts without anything to listen to....i guess i would rather pay the 143 a year and be happy with wat is on the radio then save 12 a month and listen to crapola all the time

 

i agree that the royalty is crap and yes the music is sucking worse everyday since the merger. starting to think about canceling also.

 

I let my subscription lapse as well. We don't use it enough to justify the cost, and I have several iPods and a Zune for music. With the library of music that I've put together being overseas there is enough on my hard drive that I can play music for at least 40 hours a week for 9 months straight and not repeat a single track. I think I'm in the neighborhood of 110 to 125 gigabytes (GB) of music.


Kris

 

I haven't received the letter yet. The subscription for both radios isn't due until January so I'll wait and see.

MikeyB

 

As someone that never jumped on the subscription radio wagon...total BS! Thought it was a horrible idea to begin with and still do. Agree with Mocho, Iphone and Ipod hold a heck of alot of songs, podcasts, audio books...why even bother with radio when driving??? I'll spend 14 plus hours a weekend driving to field trials and I never ever come close to touching a fraction of what I have on the Ipod.

 

I recently had to call Sirius to renew my subscription because there website wouldn't except my credit card information for an automatic withdrawal this past month, and it's the same card I have used for the last two years. So, already annoyed with that fact, I found out about the whole "royalty fee" thing and that it added an extra $5.xx to my total "every 3 months" plan. When I questioned it the answer I was given was that it was a "government fee" that was recently added and Sirius had no control over it. Now whether that is true or not is beyond me, but the fact that I have to pay that now is complete BS.

 

i cancelled my last yearly subscrip. last week then they tried to offer half off like $75 i said no, then she was like how about 3or 5 months for like $10 or 15 something like that. its like the longer you say no the better the deal. thats no way to run the place.

i'm done with them by the way

 

This will give you an idea of where it's headed.
http://www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=1372602

It's Official: Sirius XM Passing Royalty Fees On To Subscribers

June 16, 2009

Earlier this month, it was reported that Sirius XM Radio would be adding new fees to its subscription prices, as a way to pass along increases in satellite radio royalty fees to the consumer. Now the satcaster has confirmed this news, in an letter to its subscribers.

The letter, signed by Sirius XM Chief Service Officer Joe Zarella, reads as follows:

"Thank you for being an XM subscriber. We are dedicated to providing our subscribers with the best programming and listener experience available on radio today. As part of this commitment, we have an important update regarding your XM subscription.

Music royalty rights were established by the U.S. Congress as part of the Copyright Act. This Act requires payment of copyright music royalties to recording artists, musicians and recording companies who hold copyrights in sound recordings.

These royalties have recently increased dramatically, principally as a result of a decision made by the Copyright Royalty Board, which is designated by the Library of Congress to set royalty rates for sound recordings. Beginning on July 29, 2009, a 'U.S. Music Royalty Fee' of $1.98/month* for primary subscriptions and $.97/month* for multi-receiver subscriptions will be effective upon your next renewal. This fee will be used directly to offset increased payments from XM to the recording industry.

Unfortunately, we cannot control the Copyright Royalty Board's rate increase, but we can offer you ways to save on your subscription. The longer your subscription, the more you save!"

As a reaction to the additional fees, Sirius XM is offering a free month for subscribers who sign up for one year, with five free months for a two year deal and nine free months for a three year subscription.

Orbitcast reported earlier this month that Sirius XM "can no longer absorb these increased costs" in performance royalties. In 2007, the Copyright Royalty Board instituted increased performance royalty rates for satellite radio, which have gone up every year and will continue to increase into 2012. The rate increased from six percent of gross revenue in '07 and '08 to 6.5 percent this year. It will reach seven percent in 2010, 7.5 percent in 2011 and eight percent in 2012.
As part of the Sirius and XM merger, the FCC allowed the combined satcaster to pass along the royalty fees, effective July 29, 2009, whereas the company was required to absorb the fees itself before this date.

From Sirius
http://www.sirius.com/usmusicroyalty