AMERICAN INDEPENDENT RADIO PROPOSES TO MANAGE THE SIRIUS XM SET-ASIDE CHANNELS

Email: Djinn@imajinnation.com
Website: http://www.click2media.com/

Beverly Hills, CA (April 8, 2009) -- iClick2Media, a bicoastal media company, has created American Independent Radio (AIR) to manage the channels Sirius and XM were required to set aside and lease to third parties as a condition of the government permitting the two companies to merge last winter. If allowed to manage the independent channels, AIR proposes to make sure programmers that don’t have the access and ability to negotiate to get onto satellite or terrestrial radio finally has an opportunity to do so. Sirius and XM agreed to set aside 6 channels each to a third party or third parties that are independent and unaffiliated with the companies. In a February notice to the public, the FCC asked the public for comment on how it should determine who should qualify for the stations, how it should be divided up and how to assign those channels. The set-aside was meant to be a response to criticixm that the merger would eliminate competition, limit programming options and make it more difficult for independent programmers to get on satellite radio.

In a meeting on Tuesday March 23 and subsequent filings on Monday, March 30 and Monday, April 13 with the FCC, iClick2Media be selected as the Qualified Entity or Independent Trustee to manage, select, aggregate and prepare for transmission, the radio programming content to appear on the set-aside channels. iClick2Media plans to use the transmission and studio facilities of AlphaStar International Inc, an FCC-licensed satellite company and iClick2Media’s joint venture partner, to manage the channels. AIR argued in its presentations to the FCC that it would be truly independent because it has the capacity, facilities and ability to do all the handling of the content so that Sirius XM wouldn’t be required to manage much or any of the content at all.

Controversial is the fact that the definition of Qualified Entity has been preliminarily defined as an entity or entities primarily owned by African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans or Native Americans. Several parties have already commented on the docket signaling a constitutional challenge should the FCC adopt the race-based definition. Ironically, the definition was created by Sirius XM itself in an ex parte-letter filed to the FCC prior to the merger approval. AIR has joined the call of those constitutional watchdogs that have commented in this proceeding warning the FCC to be mindful of selecting who gets the channels using the race-based language. It asked the FCC to consider adopting the small economically disadvantaged business model which could also be an effective way for encouraging diversity of owners which is also an agreeable and more constitutionally sound form of diversifying the airwaves.

iClick2Media’s CEO Malik Shakur, said, "The benefit of selecting AIR is the Commission could remove the taint from any constitutional challenge by putting the responsibility for diversifying satellite broadcasting in its hands.”

In the comments and filing to the FCC, Mr. Shakur also asked that the 12 noncommercial channels set aside by Sirius XM be granted to iClick2Media as well. iClick2Media has also proposed to be held responsible for all content appearing on the AIR Channels. AIR is also proposing to be free of charge, regardless if a user is a current Sirius or XM subscriber.