What does this have to do with a satellite merger?

See, there it is again. A "satellite" merger. If people start getting high speed internet access in their car and in their pocket over their cell phone, then using satellite as a delivery method becomes much less important. Why would you need a satellite receiver if you can get that same audio over the internet without having to buy one?

What structural advantages does satellite radio have over terrestrial radio? It has a national platform - allowing listeners to hear their favorite shows no matter what part of the country they are in, the ability to be subscriber funded and commercial free (on some stations), and full national coverage (well, not really - they need a lot of terrestrial repeaters, and XM might be in trouble over them).

So anyway, the idea of a national platform is already countered by both syndication and internet streaming. If I can get my local station over the internet, I can listen to it over my high speed internet phone anywhere the phone works. Then, if I have internet access anywhere I have cell service, then that pretty much gives me national coverage (with apologies to long-haul truckers - yes, satellite is perfect for you). As for paid subscribers - well, you can do that over the internet as well, not that you'd want to do so.

Thus, with high speed wireless internet on the march, the "satellite" part of satellite radio isn't that big of an advantage. In fact, when you consider that the whole network takes hundreds of millions of dollars to get off the ground and maintain, it looks more like an albatross around their neck than an advantage. Especially when it could take years to technically integrate the two systems, and they may have to replace every existing radio installed if users want to get both services.

By the time that all gets sorted out, high speed wireless internet will be widely available, and people will be getting used to listening to music over the internet - where hopefully every terrestrial radio station has been building their brand for years.

Added bonus: With wireless internet, radio stations are getting the infrastructure built for them for no cost. Terrestrial radio will get coverage to a possibly larger percentage of Americans, and the cellular phone companies will pay for it. The best part is that customers will associate the costs of wireless internet, and thus any anger or resentment with those companies instead of radio. To listeners, radio will still be totally free.