Sirius Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI) will begin service in the Carolinas Saturday as part of an expansion into nine additional Eastern states and the District of Columbia.
In addition to North Carolina, South Carolina and Washington, D.C., Sirius will launch in Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, upstate New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The New York-based company will then have a presence in 37 states.
Guy Johnson, executive vice president of sales and marketing, said the expansion is part of an accelerated nationwide service roll out for Sirius.
“As of tomorrow, we will be available in more than three-quarters of the (continental) United States and we’ll be heading down the homestretch with only 11 more states to activate,” Johnson said in a statement. “Sirius remains on target for our expected nationwide service availability date of July 1.”
On May 15, Sirius made another launch into several Southeastern and Midwestern states. The 10 states were Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Service is already available throughout much of the rest of the Midwest, Rocky Mountain region and Southwest.
From its three satellites orbiting over the United States, Sirius broadcasts 100 channels of digital-quality radio to motorists in the continental United States. The cost is a monthly subscription fee of $12.95, plus a satellite receiver, which can be purchased at major electronic retailers. Sirius delivers 60 channels of commercial-free music and 40 sports, news and entertainment channels.
XM Satellite Radio started offering 100-channel service in November for $9.99 a month. XM offers 34 commercial-free music channels.
Sirius Satellite Radio: www.siriusradio.com
