XM, Delphi Unveil Portable Satellite Radio System
Wednesday 5:28 pm ET
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NEW YORK, September 25, Franklin Paul writing for Reuters reported that XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and auto parts maker Delphi Corp. on Wednesday debuted a pocket-sized portable device that allows listeners to tune into the broadcaster's service using a home stereo or as part of a portable "boombox."
The Delphi XM SKYFi Radio receiver, a modular unit about the size of a bar of soap, will sell for around $130, and a kit that connects it to a home or car stereo goes for about $70.
XM said systems will be available at major retail outlets in October, and expects the systems to extend its products beyond the users who have XM radio installed in their cars.
XM said it has received orders from retailers for between 120,000 and 150,000 devices, and expects brisk sales through the holiday season, although it declined to give any specific forecasts.
The system gives users attracted to satellite radio, with its diverse selection of music, talk and news channels -- many of which are broadcast free from advertisements -- the chance to listen to the system when not in a car. XM radios typically are installed in autos either at the factory or local dealers.
XM Chairman Gary Parsons, after a press briefing, told Reuters that he would not comment on how the new products would affect previously announced subscriber goals, except to say that the company stands by its forecasts.
XM still expects to reach 200,000 subscribers by of the end of the current quarter and 350,000 subscribers at year's end.
The company said it was on track for its radios to be installed in 25 different 2003 car models from General Motors Corp. later this year, with some models coming with XM radios as a standard feature of the car.
"If you look at the fourth quarter, the two big changes are SKYFi coming to market in a retail environment and the factory-installed rollout in the original equipment manufacturers," Parsons said.
XM also unveiled a portable audio unit that combines with the SKYFi receiver, which will be sold at retail stores later this year for about $100. The system consists of a "boombox" that contains a pair of speakers with an integrated high-powered antenna and a dock for the SKYFi receiver.
The product will allow users to take the radio system anywhere by hand. But unlike its sister car system, it does not give listeners the option of tuning to traditional AM and FM radio. Robert Acker, vice president, product marketing and strategy for XM Satellite Radio said the added receiver would have driven up the cost of the system.
"(Consumers) can get separate AM and FM radio for fairly cheap," he said. "Most people have those around the house."
The new product break ground for Delphi's Delphi Product & Service Solutions unit, which plans to develop other consumer electronics devices. Delphi, the world's largest maker of auto parts, is better know for airbags, climate control systems and electrical systems it manufactures.
At the briefing Frank Ordonez, president of the unit, said it expects to unveil next year a "mobile productivity center," which includes a voice-activated phone for use in a car, which gives a driver hands-free access to their digital phone book and voicemail.
XM and Delphi first announced in 1999 an agreement to develop the radios for automobiles. General Motors, the former parent of, and biggest current client to Delphi, holds an ownership stake in XM.