TORONTO – XM Canada Wednesday staked out the low-price position in the new satellite radio market in Canada.
While SIRIUS Canada this month announced its service will be available for $14.99 a month, XM has set a price of $12.99 a month. SIRIUS, however, has two more Canadian channels than XM does.
XM Canada will deliver a lineup of digital-quality commercial-free music appealing to wide-ranging music tastes – from jazz and blues favourites and a complete spectrum of classical and country to Latin vibes, dance/electronica, state-of-the-art new and classic rock plus hits from the past five decades and Christian.
Below are some programming descriptions:
Decades – Individual channels recreating the yesteryears and reliving the experiences through music hits specific to each decade. Featuring big band sound of the ‘40s; Rock and Roll legends such as Elvis and Buddy Holly of the ‘50s; the Beatles and other bands of the ‘60s; disco fever of the ‘70s; original pop chart hits and hard rock from the ‘80s; and dance beats and grunge sounds of the ‘90s.
Rock – XM has more than a dozen rock channels. Classic rock on Deep Tracks; hard rock on Boneyard; and College Rock on XMU; multiple channels of alternative rock through the ages on Fred, XM Café, Ethel, Squizz and Lucy; big hits on Top Tracks, acoustic rock on The Loft and progressive rock on XM Music Lab and Fungus.
Pop & Hits – The best of them have been culled for listener enjoyment, with dedicated channels for pop hits from around world, greatest love songs, as well as movie soundtracks on Cinemagic, On Broadway’s show tunes and chart toppers on the Top 20 on 20 channel.
Country – Old-time, classic, contemporary, bluegrass and alternative country – a whole range of musical styles from country legends on Hank’s Place to today’s top country hits on Highway 16.
Urban – From the soulful expressiveness of R&B to the rhythm of a rapper’s beat, it could be decades old or new on the street – no matter what, it moves you, including uncensored hip hop on RAW and old school rap and hip hop programmed by Snoop Dogg on The Rhyme.
Jazz and Blues – Featuring every hue of the jazz and blues palette from Louis, Ella, Duke and other originals on Real Jazz and Sinatra Family favourites on Frank’s Place, to cool and contemporary jazz on Watercolors and future fusion hits and modern, plugged-in jazz on Beyond Jazz.
Dance – World-class DJs mixing cutting-edge dance music from around the world will make everyone’s feet move. Underground dance from the club/rave culture on The Move; non-stop dance club hits on BPM; mind-altering electronica mix and breakbeats on The System; and the most danceable disco on Chrome.
Lifestyle – An assortment of fresh channels including Hear Music – which is the voice of Starbucks, to an eclectic mix of classical, jazz and rock on Fine Tuning and a blend of soothing and inspiring meditative messaging on Audio Visions, all geared to enlighten, educate and satisfy sophisticated listening tastes.
Classical – Coverage of the classical spectrum from the Renaissance to today.
And starting this season, hockey fans will be able to hear all their favourite teams across the country (except local blackouts) with NHL play-by-play game coverage of more than 40 games per week and 1,000 games per season. XM will become the exclusive satellite radio home of the NHL beginning with the 2007/2008 season.
Some live performances also dot the XM lineup.
The service also broadcasts 24-hour news programs from CNN, CNBC, BBC World Service and Fox News, as well as the Bob Edwards Show on XM Public Radio.
The English Canadian channels on XM are:
Home Ice – A hockey talk channel with “expert coverage from well-known commentators and ex-NHL stars,” says the release.
(un)Signed – A rock music channel featuring new, emerging and recently established Canadian rock artists.
Laugh Attack – An uncensored comedy channel spotlighting Canada’s rich pool of extraordinary comedians.
Canada 360 – A 24/7 national news and information channel focused on the latest news, weather, sports, business and entertainment information and issues of importance to Canadians.
The French channels are:
Air Musique – A trend-oriented music channel playing a fusion of punk, hip-hop, metal, electronic and alternative rock music.
Franc Parler – A round-the-clock news, talk and information channel with an emphasis on sports. The channel will also be the home to French language NHL play-by-play games coverage.
Sur La Route – A music channel featuring a blend of modern and classic pop, folk, rock and roll, “chanson” and soul featuring yesterday’s, today’s and tomorrow’s stars.
Quoi de Neuf – An arts and entertainment news and information channel covering everything from new movie releases, DVD releases, concerts, shows and theatre activity to the latest information on new technology, including computers, video games and more.
XM Canada’s receivers will be available before Christmas (but they still can’t say exactly when) through A&B Sound, Best Buy, Future Shop, Canadian Tire, Dumoulin/Audiotronic, London Drugs, Sears Canada, The Source by Circuit City, Visions Electronics and other retailers. In addition, General Motors of Canada will be rolling out select 2006 models with XM factory-installed.
Those soon-to-be-in-store receivers include the new Delphi RoadyXT, an ultra-thin satellite radio, which will sell for $99.99 through January 31, 2006 after rebate.
Three of the XM2go portable receivers (which also record the music) will be available in Canada this year, too.
Go to www.xmradio.ca for the full list.
