Open Device Condition Added To The Merger Mix…

Wednesday, May, 28, 2008 by Mel Phillips.

Still another condition has been submitted to the FCC pre-XM/Sirius merger decision by the agency.  So when the moon is in the seventh house and Jupiter aligns with Mars and peace guides the planets and the merger is approved, add this condition submitted by U.S. Electronics  to the list:  An ‘open device’  condition would require the newly merged company to adopt certain requirements enabling consumers to chose whichever device they prefer to connect to satellite radio networks.  This condition proposed by U.S. Electronics has already gained widespread support from key legislators, public interest groups, businesses in the industry and much of the media world and there’s more…

U.S. Electronics proposes to open access to retail and automotive markets for competitive designers, manufacturers and distributors of satellite radio receivers giving competitive and innovative companies access to all necessary technical requirements to produce new radios.  This would give everyone an opportunity to cash in on the merger.  In addition, maintaining product quality and integrity, pricing and compliance with FCC rules and regulations are all conditions covered in the U.S. Electronics proposal.  They also suggest setting up an independent monitor as a safeguard…

FCC chairman Kevin Martin has already noted the advantages of  ‘open device’, stating that “competition in the manufacturing and distribution of consumer devices has always led to innovation, lower price and higher quality.”  There won’t be any opposition to ‘open device’ except for maybe XM and Sirius but the ball is not in their court, is it???

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1934]  Five-to-one:  Elzire Dionne  gives birth to quintuplets in Ontario, Canada.  The quints are all girls:  Annette, Cecile, Emilie, Marie and Yvonne.  Seventy-four years later, Annette and Cecile are the lone survivors…
2. 1951]  Going yard:  Willie Mays  hits his first home run against future Baseball Hall of Famer Warren Spahn.  These two will become teammates with the Mets twenty years later…1956]  The Pirates’ Dale Long  becomes the first player to hit home runs in 8 consecutive games.  In 1987 the Yankees’ Don Mattingly  and in 1993, Seattle’s Ken Griffey Jr. will tie the record…
3. 1957]  Westward ho:  The National League approves the move of the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants to Los Angeles and San Francisco.  The Mets will come along in 1962 when the National League returns to New York…
4. 1977]  Tragic fire:  Singer John Davidson escapes a fire at a supper club in Kentucky that takes 164 lives.  Another 130 are injured…
5. 1985]  On the cover of Vanity Fair:  President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy…
6. 1987]  Pilot roulette:  19-year old West German pilot Mathias Rust  lands his plane in Moscow’s Red Square after penetrating Soviet air defenses.  Rust is one lucky boy as he’s released in August, 1988…
7. 1989]  Bumper cars at the Indy:  Emerson Fittipaldi (great name) and Al Unser Jr. play bumper cars at the Indy 500 with Unser helping Fittipaldi to win the race - not what Unser had in mind…
8. 1996]  Taking a bullet for Bill:  President Clinton’s former business partners in the Whitewater land deal, James and Susan McDougal refuse to say the Clinton’s had anything to do with the case and end up in jail.  Arkansas Governor Jim Guy Tucker  is also convicted of fraud…
9. 1998]  Another SNL tragedy:  Comic Phil Hartman, 49, of “Saturday Night Live” and “Newsradio” is shot to death at his home in California by his wife Brynn who then takes her own life…
10. 2005]  Rivalry rip:  The Boston Red Sox  score 2 touchdowns and a field goal to beat the Yankees 17-1 in the most lopsided score in their rivalry’s history.  The Yankees score on a rouge…

Music Memories:

• 1955]  Billboard’s Most Popular Song:  “The Ballad of Davey Crockett” - Fess Parker…
• 1957]  Debuted on this date:  The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) is established.  NARAS  puts on the Grammy Awards every year…1977]  “Barracuda” - Heart, which every Classic Rock jock has at one time or another intro’d as “Baccaruda“…
• 1976]  Breaking up is hard to do:  The Allman Brothers  break up after Gregg Allman testifies against his personal road manager in a drug case.  The band re-forms  in 1978…

Commentary:

Norm N. Nite, legendary radio host and author of “Rock On” will be auctioning his personal collection of classic rock memorabilia in “The Legends of Radio Auction” hosted by Backstage Auctions, June 22-29, 2008.  One of the prized possessions that Norm will auction off is his hard cover copy of “Rock On” that contains over 125 autographs from recording artists who number John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Keith Richards, Dick Clark, The Beach Boys, Chubby Checker, Bo Diddley, Roy Orbison and many more.  I was with Norm the night of the first ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction’ in 1986 and remember Fats Domino signing the book.  For more information on the auction, visit: www.backstageauctions.com  and good luck with your treasured auction Norm…

“Happy Birthday…happy birthday”:

Elizabeth Hasselbeck (31), Kylie Minogue (40), John Fogerty (63), Billy Vera (64), Gladys Knight (64), Rudolph Giuliani (64), Jerry West (70), Carroll Baker (77) and Lou Duva (86)…

Timeline Countdown:  18 days until Father’s Day, 25 days until summer and 38 days until July 4th… 

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