In the same way that cable TV brought more choices to viewers, XM offers radio listeners more than 170 radio channels.
Things sure have changed since Nikola Tesla was granted a U.S. patent
for a "system of transmitting electrical energy" and another patent for
"an electrical transmitter" in 1900. These patents set the stage for
the broadcasting medium that became known as radio. Here are a few
highlights in radio's development:
• In 1901, Guglielmo Marconi, at a wireless receiver in St. John's,
Newfoundland, picked up the first transatlantic radio signal,
transmitted some 2,000 miles from a station in Cornwall, England.
• On Christmas Eve, 1906, engineering professor Reginald Fessenden
transmitted a voice and music program in Massachusetts that was picked
up as far away as Virginia.
• In 1920, station KDKA in Pittsburgh became radio's first scheduled
commercial programmer with its broadcast of the Harding-Cox
presidential election returns. By 1921, there were eight commercial
radio stations in the U.S.
• Pacifica Radio went on the air in 1949 as KPFA-FM in Berkeley,
Calif., and in 1951 received the first major foundation grant for the
support of a noncommercial radio broadcast operation.
• The first pocket transistor radios hit the market in 1952.
• Stereophonic broadcasting began in the 1960s.
• Satellite radio was launched in 2001 when XM started broadcasting across the continental U.S.
In the same way that cable TV brought more choices to viewers, XM
offers radio listeners more than 170 radio channels, including
commercial-free music from a variety of genres, exclusive concerts and
original music series.
It also broadcasts sports coverage such as Major League Baseball,
National Hockey League games, auto racing and college sports. In
addition, there are news reports from CNN, C-SPAN, CNBC, BBC and other
new sources, as well as traffic and weather reports for 21 major
markets.
Plus, there's comedy; drama; children's shows; variety programming with
personalities such as Bob Dylan, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Snoop Dogg and
public radio legend Bob Edwards and talk shows. For instance,
subscribers can listen each week as Oprah Winfrey opens up with her
audience and speaks from the heart about what's on her mind,
exclusively on "Oprah & Friends." Listeners can even call in on
866-OPRAH-XM.
XM radios for the car, home, and portable use are available at consumer
electronics stores. XM radios also come installed in many new cars and
trucks.
