32 Million Hear Sirius XM Radio

sirius xm radio

A new Arbitron survey shows that satellite radio broadcaster Sirius XM's various ad-supported channels, including news, talk radio and sports programming, are heard by approximately 32 million adults per week. The new figures, based on a survey conducted by Arbitron in October and November 2009, come as Sirius XM continues working to build its existing revenue streams, including greater ad support.

The survey included a number of positive findings: Satellite radio subscribers are relatively well-educated and well-heeled, with 56% holding a college degree or higher and 25% reporting a household income of $150,000 or better, compared to 25% and 9% of the population at large.

They are also devoted listeners -- going to Sirius XM for 62% of their total audio consumption, versus just 16% for AM-FM, 10% for mobile devices like iPods and MP3 players, and 4% for online (streaming) audio. Out of a typical drive time of 2.75 hours per day, satellite radio subscribers spend just under two hours (71%) listening to satellite radio, on average.

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The drive-time listening is particularly important to Sirius XM, which in recent years has focused on OEM deals with carmakers to drive subscription growth, as satellite radio appears to be reaching saturation in the consumer marketplace.

Sirius XM has deals to offer factory-installed satellite radio sets with virtually every major carmaker in America.

Although the satellite radio broadcaster promotes itself as having commercial-free music channels, Sirius XM's talk, sports, entertainment and traffic channels have always accepted advertising, pre- and post-merger.

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