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iPod to Podcast Sirius Satellite Radio Content?
Kelly McNeill writes "The last time Apple and Sirius met up to discuss the possibilities of integrating satellite radio into the iPod, Steve Jobs turned down the offer. However, new reports show that the two companies are talking again. Kelly McNeill submitted the following editorial to osOpinion/osViews, which suggests the partnership is not to integrate satellite into the iPod but rather to make Sirius's original content for the future version of iTunes that will sport new podcasting capabilities."
The one yesterday was about a Sirius receiver in the iPod...this is about PodCasting the Sirius content following its airing. Pathetic is a big word not to be used lightly.
now you can even timeshift slashdot articles. if you didn't have a chance to catch the original, no need to worry!
This makes sense, after all, Apple wants you to be able to listen to your iPod wherever you are, including subways, trains, planes, moms' basements, etc, where I don't think Sirius goes.
They also want people to keep going on the music store homepage, where podcasts will probably be.
Is Sirius available out of the US right now? (genuine question)
If not, then this would give them the opportunity to go worldwide...
Hello! I'm a disaster waiting to happen!
Sirius representing all internet radio
Apple representing all podcast sites
RIAA representing The MAN
Radio programming is usually block or random format.
A sirius channel that plays randon selections from a particular genre is a hybrid afforded by owning many channels. genre is blocked, selections are random.
The killer podcast site for Apple would allow users to select.
1)programs such as news or 'shows' from block formatted stations, shifted to desired positions in the users ipod.
2)plays in weighted ratios from genre blocked channels.
For example.
My ideal radio station might be a mix of raggae, 60's rock, 70's rock, punk, classical, and fresh indie music with news at noon. With the podcast site removing the complexity of time shifting and selection I can be my own radio program director.
Say I want my music in ratio 3:2:5:1:3:1 from the list above. Furthermore I might prefer nterleaved to linear play.
It's easy to program if the site is set up as programming grids. For sirius the grid might have one axis labeled channel and one labeled genre. I might first select the genres and the assign ratios. For the block content it's 3-D grid. Source(station), day of week, time with block programs identifier in the selecion box. I might pick a block of bluegrass music topical to trains from WRFG in Atlanta (if the program director has figured out how to interface his station to apples site).
The above is not detail. I've actually bee working on this project for some time, sans Apple and Sirius and will be HAPPY for them to beat it out in court with RIAA rather than lil-ole-me...
Doesn't have to be near the border. I know people several hundred miles north of the U.S. border in Manitoba who use Sirius. They bought it in the states. I assume they're using a credit card with an American billing address to pay for it. Or maybe not.
Because of the figure-eight flight path of the Sirius satellites, it should be theoretically possible to pick up the signal anywhere from the north pole down to Brazil. YMMV.
-- I'm old enough to have lived through six different meanings of the word "hacker."