Howard Stern Coming To the Net 334
theodp writes, "To promote an Internet radio service Sirius is launching this week, Howard Stern's 4+ hour program will be made available live online for free on October 25 and 26. The new Sirius service will offer 75+ channels of CD-quality programming for $12.95/month with no need to buy a Sirius satellite receiver."
Yawn... (Score:3, Funny)
Nope. Yawn sums it up.
Is Slashdot accepting ads as stories now? (Score:2)
It always has...just getting worse lately. (Score:3, Insightful)
Ask yourself the same question the next time a Nintendo (proprietary gaming platform) or Google (proprietary search engine) blurb shows up. Many, if not most of Slashdot's stories are cheap, positive PR pieces for corporations open-source Slashdotters normally wouldn't support.
"CD quality programming" (Score:2, Informative)
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As far as Howard, his show is quite amusing for the guests he has and the non-standard questions he asks them. Even though on satellite
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Wow. Talk about bullshit. No, Stern wasn't "paranoid" about internet broadcasts (as long as they're paid for - this is a subscription-based business). He was talking about how they needed an Internet stream from virtually the day he arrived on the air.
Stern and Sirius are no more "paranoid" that people will steal their shit than anyone else who has a service they're trying to tell
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http://www.smgradio.com/core/audio/ogg/live.pls?s
(Though they are a UK Ad supported pop music channel so the quality of the content is not guaranteed)
$13 a month... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:$13 a month... (Score:5, Insightful)
Frankly I'm surprised that Sirius isn't offering this subscription for less. $13/month is about what a regular radio subscription costs, and that includes access to the internet feeds. Since you can get Sirius radios for as low as $60 it'd make more sense to buy a radio and monthly subscription to get both radio & internet access instead of $13/month for just internet access.
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-Eric
CD quality? (Score:5, Funny)
Re:CD quality? (Score:4, Interesting)
CD quality over the net? (Score:2)
13 bucks a month? (Score:5, Insightful)
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Yes and no. Access to Sirius streaming is included with the normal subscription, but is a low bitrate stream of iffy quality. The streaming service the article talks about is a higher bitrate that satellite subscribers won't get unless they pay an additional $3 a month.
I think they should throw in the bitrate upgrade for purchasers of the new Stiletto, but thats just me.
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XM has had a mobile device (MyFi, there may be others) for about two years now, and subscribers can listen via the internet which I believe offers some extra channels.
I was under the impression that there were some models of receivers that came with rebates from time to time that made them free
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Sirius is already available on Sprint phones (if you pay for an access pack and then pay for access to Sirius). I have the $15 pack (I forget what it's called but it allows me unlimited data usa
Mobile Clients? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Mobile Clients? (Score:4, Funny)
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I'll play the role of grammar nazi here. I seriously doubt anyone who is "more or less neutral" on a given subject would use either of the expressions "I could care less" or alternatively,"I couldn't care less." Both those expressions are meant to imply complete disinterest. One is correct and meaningful; the other, if not nonsensical, is awkward at best.
What I find funny (an
Re:Mobile Clients? (Score:5, Funny)
You couldn't care less? Well I surely could but it's not worth the effort.
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CD-quality programming . . .Yeah right (Score:5, Informative)
CD-quality should imply a real and quantifiable level of quality . . . not "it sounds like a CD to the casual listener (that doesn't know that analog FM radio music is typically compressed in dynamic range and frequency and that radio broadcasts are already equalized for cheap car stereos and boomboxes)."
Re:CD-quality programming . . .Yeah right (Score:5, Informative)
Stern's broadcasts on Sirius as received by the hardware satellite receivers isn't at talk quality (~32kbps), but at the same quality as their music channels (~128kbps).
The Internet service you get with Sirius that's standard is ~32kbps for all channels, which makes it sounds a little off. Doesn't matter to me all that much, but some people notice the difference. The new service that is being offered gives the channels at the higher quality bitrate.
For those of you that think that now Stern is just 4-hours of 4-letter words, it's not. They're in there, and the discussions get a bit more frank than before, but it's like the terrestrial broadcast without the bleeps for the most part. At one point early on, Stern yelled at someone (Ronnie?) and told him to quit swearing all the time because it wasn't funny.
Don't like Stern? That's fine. My dad hates him with a passion. A few months ago he asked me about my Sirius and a few weeks later he had his own radio in the car. He loves it. It's like cable TV - listen to what you want, there's a lot of variety. An unexpected gem is radio classics, playing radio shows from way back when. Jack Benny's humor still stands the test of time.
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Oh, and that cable TV analogy doesn't work for me.
Re:CD-quality programming . . .Yeah right (Score:4, Interesting)
You know, I'm getting deadly tired of people bragging about they mp3 compression kung-fu knowledge.
YES, WE REALIZE IT'S COMPRESSED.
Geez.. and yea, it's CD quality to the casual listener and in fact just THAT is what it's supposed to mean. If you wanna see how much people care about marginal improvements in quality, see where DVD-Audio went, and you can witness where HD DVD and Blue Ray will go (hint: nowhere... I know, I know).
People whining about professionally encoded (encoder matters a lot) mp3 streams of 128kbps and more having terrible quality really amaze me. It'd a damn radio after all. It's not like you recover critical encrypted messages hidden in the audio and you need 1:1 correspondence of each sample, or your kidnapped wife is dead in 24 hours.
In a nutshell, you can take your mp3 l33t skills and your 64-bit audio 256kHz 15+1 surround system and shove it up your audio output socket.
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In fact I find the sound quality downright annoying compared with listening to a real CD and would rather listen to silence, because at least silence doesn't grate on my nerves as complex chords and countermelodies from a orchestra overwhelm the compression algo
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How much for the service without Howard? (Score:3, Insightful)
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As for sources of news, I prefer Reuters, Google News, the BBC, and CNN. Yes CNN a
Re:How much for the service without Howard? (Score:5, Insightful)
I was with you at first, but the quoted bit above is where you lost me. You don't like him, you don't want to listen, you were glad when he left regular radio...man, that's cool.
The whole "they tell you what to think" rap...eh, not so much. I've listened to Howard for years, and point blank, it's entertainment. Nothing more, nothing less. Actually, Howard and the crew are really smart people. Sure, you tend to get a liberal slant on the occassions they delve into truly important topics, but at the same time, they tend to call things what they are.
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I've been looking into both XM and Sirius lately. I have no idea who Opie and Andy are or that they were on XM. For the GP to say that he doesn't want to "patronize a service that promotes that kind of programming" is perfectly valid since XM obviously isn't doing enough to promote them (emphasis mine).
I don't care one way or the other abo
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But, I'll keep mine for Comedy Central, History Channel, and Discovery. (They can keep the rest, as far as I'm concerned)
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Who? (Score:2, Insightful)
Satellite radio in the car, great. At home, ??? (Score:4, Interesting)
Now, satellite radio in the car is one thing, but PAYING for the same content strictly for use in the home makes no sense. If you have the Internet you already have access to free, high quality radio stations playing a wide variety of music, never mind that all the cable and satellite companies include commercial free music stations as part of their basic digital service.
I understand the need for Sirius to broaden their income base as they have yet to make money, but even the most novice Internet user is aware of free alternatives that offer essentially the same or better content.
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Thanks for turning me off to Sirius!
--Rob
Convenience - That's All (Score:2)
Who cares? (Score:3, Insightful)
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One thing I guess you can count on in America is plenty of immature guys!
Waited too long (Score:2)
Advertisement (Score:5, Insightful)
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People said the same thing about Cable TV. (Score:3, Insightful)
I never listened to Howard when he was on terrestrial radio but now I do on Sirius. He's funny and there are some interesting interviews. Not all the time mind you but a fair amount of time.
To the prudes out there that can't stand to hear what he has to say, don't listen. Turn the dial.
$13 bucks a month is worth having something to listen to on the way to work. There are more then just Howards 2 stations to listen to.
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Yep, people said the same thing and so cable did the same thing: promised commercial free television except on networks already bro
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There's a significant difference. Cable TV is an active entertainment device. People sit and watch. They schedule their day around shows, they usually don't do anything while watching.
Radio is used as a passive entertainment vehicle, usually listened to while doing other tasks. People rarely schedule their day around it.
I wouldn't pay a monthly fee for radio any more than I would for my toaster or washing machine.
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I'll take that wager. I don't pay for cable or satellite. I used to have a Dish but I got rid of it two years ago and aside from the occasional football game, haven't really missed it. I do assume that I am in a serious minority judging by the reaction I got when I told the Dish rep that I was dropping service and replacing it with nothing.
I have caught myself watching more TV shows lately with iTunes, that AOL TV thing, and free streaming offered by some networks but it
Not with a choice (Score:2)
I don't. That's because finally we have a choice other than subscription for a larger variety of TV - download (legal or otherwise). Why would I pay any monthy fee, much less the $60+ cable companies want, to watch just a few shows?
No, if consumers are offered a choice many people prefer to pay as they go - and the rise o
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sigh. why do you people do that? you have a reasonably sound argument: people will pay for more than they think they'll pay for, things become viewed as indispensable once they're familiar, and so on. but then you go and blow it by associating the argument with obviously false, trivially disprovable over-generalization. even though disproving the "ALL" doesn't impact the rest of your argument logically, it totally wrecks your credibil
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http://www.mediabuyerplanner.com/2006/10/04/sirius _subscribers_surpass_5/index.php [mediabuyerplanner.com]
Seems you got it wrong bub.
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http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/arts/entertainment- media-stern.html?_r=1&oref=slogin [nytimes.com]
And if the link doesn't work (login? - crap!)
"After fulfilling the last 14 months on his contract at CBS Corp., Stern debuted in January 2006 on Sirius under a five-year deal valued at $500 million and immediately became the marquee talent of the No. 2 satellite radio provider. He also recently ventured into the realm of video-on-demand television with an all-Stern channel available through several major cab
Hoo Hoo I invented Internet Radio, tell em Fred. (Score:2, Informative)
Stern == Boring (Score:2, Insightful)
He's coming to the Internet! Cool - (Score:2)
Seriously, he was broadcasting in Montreal for a while and he couldn't cut it there because no one found him interesting.
There are plenty of places where his humour just doesn't cut it and he comes across as rather boring and unimaginative.
I imagine alot of people also find him shocking, but I just find him lame.
If you dont like it, then dont listen (Score:5, Insightful)
Thanks,
the 5+ million Sirius subscribers
mod parent through the roof (Score:2)
Just tune your FM radio to 87.9! (Score:5, Interesting)
Apparently many Sirius satellite radio receivers must be add-on units that work through FM modulators with the car's FM radio. And 87.9 is apparently the default FM conversion setting.
Based on my unscientific poll, during drive time something like 2/3 of Boston-area Sirius subscribers are tuned to Stern.
OK, to tell the truth, no, I don't get continuous, uninterrupted Stern that way, but, yes, I do keep one of my presets at 87.9 and I do check from time to time to see if anything is on there... and I get enough Stern to feel like I'm still "in touch" with him and his gang.
So, the question I have is, which is it? are jackbooted Sirius thugs going to sue me for theft of services? Or are jackbooted FCC thugs going to toss the converter operators in jail for operating pirate radio stations?
Surprise (Score:2, Insightful)
More relevant to the topic, I hope they don't take away net access to the people who already have subscriptions, or make them pay extra for it.
No Stern (Score:2)
Their web app sucks. It is streaming at 32K, far from "CD quality" and has little to no content. If they are only letting me have it for two days, give me more than 5% of what you have to offer. Or at least let me choose what I want to check out.
You don't have to install their plugin to use it. Firefox doesn't recognize their plugin anyway...
After picking through their site, Stern is supposed to fall under the "entertainment" category. All that is
Anyway to get it outside the US? (Score:2)
Free Stern? (Score:3, Funny)
I already get that with Slashdot and Fark!
Feh. (Score:2)
Howard stopped being funny when he stoped shocking New Yorkers in a novel way and just started amusing himself.
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I'll have a go.
The Sirius is on the internet, or they have a website at least which is on the internet (yeah, that'll do)
Nerds use the internet
This is news article about something on the internet
So this is News for Nerds... I did it!!!
That's Numberwang.
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O&A! O&A! O&A! O&A! O&A!
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howie math is funny
o&a have way more listeners, especially on terrestrial radio
howard is irrelevant and delusional, as are his fans who actually believe howie math
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Care to explain how a "no talent hack" regularly had a highly rated syndicated radio show, multiple best-seller books, a movie that did reasonably well, and also highly rated television shows before being offered $500 million to go to satellite? How can a no-talent hack like me get a paycheck like that?
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Ba Ba Booey to you all.
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Re:stern = hack radio (Score:4, Insightful)
Howard is WAY past his prime, anyway. He's an interesting guy, and is even capable of the occasional intelligent insight. But the daily grind of listening to him go on...and on...and on...and on...and on about strippers/lesbians/his dick/porn stars/etc. tends to get VERY old, very fast.
When he was in his heyday, I listened to him. He had some interesting stuff to say and his interviews were truly unique (who else could have gotten away with asking Julia Roberts how big Liam Neeson's dick was?). But it was, at best, one good segment for every 15 lame ones. And that was in his HEYDAY (10-15 years ago).
Besides, without the FCC or his wife to mock anymore, what's really left for him to do? He's like an aging knight in a world where all the dragons have already been slain.
-Eric
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Keep in mind that for the past 5 years or so on terrestrial radio he was really holding back because of more draconian FCC regulations as well as his own bosses being afraid of lawsuits, loss of their FCC licenses, etc. Sinc
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Re:stern = hack radio (Score:4, Insightful)
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Nothing found.
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Fi'YAH!
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FudRucker is perpetually stuck with the mind & maturity of a poorly advised conservative with a one track mind...
(in other words... have you people even listened to Stern recently? people who think he's offensive or immature have probably never even listened to the show, because it's far from offensive or immature)