You may have heard about satellite radio and wondered about it. If you are like me, the concept of paying for radio may not have been that appealing before because of the fact of all the free radio you can listen to now, just as it has been for decades. These days however listeners are more discerning, and although satellite radio started off slowly it has really caught some steam due to several factors.
Very few, or no commercials at all. Compare this to terrestrial radio where you can literally be buried in advertisements between the segments of programming you really want to listen to.
CD quality sound. Satellite radio is clear, crisp and there is no tuning errors as your device is already precisely tuned to the station of your choice. It is designed to work anywhere in North America way beyond the range of FM frequencies.
Choice of format and content. Sirius radio itself offers 130 channels currently of not only music but news and talk radio as well. This is an exquisite choice for listeners who choose not to fumble with CD's, or MP3 files, and prefer a little DJ guidance.
A satellite radio or subscription radio (SR) is a digital radio signal that is broadcast by a communications satellite, which covers a much wider geographical range than terrestrial radio signals.
For now, satellite radio offers a meaningful alternative to ground-based radio services in some countries, notably the United States. Mobile services, such as Sirius, XM, and Worldspace, allow listeners to roam across an entire continent, listening to the same audio programming anywhere they go. Other services, such as Music Choice or Muzak's satellite-delivered content, require a fixed-location receiver and a dish antenna. In all cases, the antenna must have a clear view to the satellites. In areas where tall buildings, bridges, or even parking garages obscure the signal, repeaters can be placed to make the signal available to listeners.
Radio services are usually provided by commercial ventures and are subscription-based. The various services are proprietary signals, requiring specialized hardware for decoding and playback. Providers usually carry a variety of news, weather, sports, and music channels, with the music channels generally being commercial-free.
In areas with a relatively high population density, it is easier and less expensive to reach the bulk of the population with terrestrial broadcasts. Thus in the UK and some other countries, the contemporary evolution of radio services is focused on Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) services or HD Radio, rather than satellite radio.
