The Department of Justice has given the okay to the long-pending planned merger of XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio:
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The U.S. Justice Department approved the merger between satellite radio companies Sirius and XM Monday, more than a year after the two companies first announced their deal.
In its decision, the Department of Justice had to determine whether an XM-Sirius merger was anti-competitive, or if other media companies such as Clear Channel (CCU, Fortune 500), CBS (CBS, Fortune 500), or even Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) with its iTunes software and iPod music player served as alternate options for music and media customers.
There’s still one more hurdle to pass, and that’s approval by the Federal Communications Commission, but this is a major step forward for a merger that seemed to be falling off track.
