An example of how report-happy people can be ... an 11-page report from the Carmel Group denouncing the proposed merger of satellite-radio firms XM and Sirius gets the exclusive treatment from the NY Post . The story does mention that the report was sponsored by the National Association of Broadcasters, already on record as opposed. The reason for the attention: Carmel’s similarly negative report on the proposed DirecTV/Echostar deal got some of the credit for derailing that effort. Carmel’s Jimmy Schaeffler does a point-by-point on the reasons why critics of this proposal are right, including a chart showing how actions by one precipitated resonse by the other. The emphasis is on proving that the companies’ argument that the competitive marketplace is broader than when the services launched has no merit. Maybe yes, maybe no. But it would be a lot more surprising to read why that doesn’t matter in a report not funded by an opponent.
Techdirt: “What the report apparently tries to highlight is that as Sirius and XM competed with each other, they continually tried to one-up each other with new features and services—thus suggesting that competition between the two was strong. Now, obviously, we feel that competition like this does drive innovation, but it brushes aside the fact that competition also comes from terrestrial radio, iPods and other forms of entertainment.”