SiriusXM Announces New Satellite Radio Pricing

SiriusXM has unveiled a new pricing structure for its satellite radio service that allows customers to subscribe to a basic package of music channels and then upgrade to additional programming packages for an additional fee.

SiriusXM satellite radio now starts at $10 a month, which includes access to all free music stations offered through the platform, executives confirmed Thursday.

From there, customers can add individual packages consisting of news (an additional $5 per month), talk (an additional $5 per month), and sports channels (an additional $8 per month), although additional packages are optional.

The plan also includes access to the SiriusXM music streaming app, which will offer the same channels available in a customer’s satellite radio subscription, including any additional channels purchased.

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On a conference call with investors, SiriusXM CEO Jennifer Witz said the updated pricing is intended to help the company achieve certain long-term growth and revenue goals.

“We believe this will both attract listeners who may have been left behind by our premium priced packages and allow us to move away from discount pricing, allowing price-conscious subscribers to tailor a package to their interests and budget, instead rather than relying on short-term advertising packages,” Witz said.

The commentary suggests that SiriusXM will eventually stop the practice of offering discounts when they call to cancel service, which is intended to reduce the company’s churn rate. Some longtime customers have been taking advantage of the discount for years, threatening to cancel their plan just to get the discount—a loophole that SiriusXM now appears to be closing.

However, there’s another way to get SiriusXM programming on the cheap: ditch your satellite radio tuner. A subscription to the SiriusXM streaming service costs $10 a month and includes all music, talk, news and sports—no add-ons required. The service operates through the SiriusXM app, which is available on all popular smartphones and tablets, as well as through smart speakers powered by Google Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa.

Existing SiriusXM customers can upgrade to new plans if they choose or stay on their old plan for now. The company also continues to sell a plan called “SiriusXM All Access,” which includes access to all music, news, sports and talk channels on satellite and streaming platforms for $25 per month.

All plans that include music have separate taxes and music royalties, the latter of which increases the price of satellite packages by nearly 22 percent and the price of a streaming-only platform by nearly 9 percent.