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When Legacy Business Models Attack

April 20, 2007 12:48:31.730

Don't expect stellar displays of logic when old, tired, and scared businesses try to use any trick they can find to attack an upstart. For instance, take a look at the National Association of Broadcaster's current line against the XM/Sirius merger:

Problem is, the only colorable argument against the merger is that it would create a monopoly for satellite radio. XM and Sirius cleverly (and probably accurately) headed that objection off by noting that satellite radio competes with a variety of technologies for the listener's ear. This put the NAB in an awkward position. The lobby would have to argue that despite its 15-year effort to derail satellite radio, satellite radio was not a competitor. Of course, the harder the NAB fights and the more money the NAB spends to promote this message, the clearer it becomes that the NAB fears the competition posed by an XM-Sirius alliance. In effect, the more the NAB fights the merger, the more it undermines its own argument against it.

I'm sure they'll think of something. In the meantime, I expect an uptick in subscriptions once this merger does go through.

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