In one of my past trivia questions, A Bumpy Ride for XM Satellite, I highlighted the legal troubles of XM Satellite.
One legal problem facing XM Satellite is a lawsuit concerning its Pioneer Inno, a portable satellite radio with advanced recording features that allow listeners to download songs as they hear them on XM and keep them on the recorder for the duration of the XM subscription. The music industry called the Inno’s recording capability equivalent to an illegal download and sued XM for copyright infringement. Since filing of the lawsuit in May 2006, XM has settled with three of the four major record companies: Sony BMG, Warner
Music Group, and Universal Music Group. EMI is the last holdout of the four majors.
Sirius Satellite Radio offers a similar device, the S50. However, there was no music industry lawsuit against Sirius because the parties entered a licensing agreement pursuant to which Sirius pays for songs recorded by their listeners and limits the number of receivers with recording capabilities produced.
Sirius and XM are on the verge of a merger. It will be interesting to see what will happen to EMI’s claim, the music industry lawsuit, and continued support of XM’s Pioneer Inno once the merger takes place.
