Nov/090
Sirius satellite radio Information
Sirius satellite radio is one of the largest American broadcasters enjoying a great reputation and popularity owing to the diversity of channels and the wide range of tastes it suits. Although most channels cover music genres in general, subscribers benefit from an almost equal number of news, sports and entertainment channels available in ground and online formats too. The name of Sirius Satellite Radio has grown more popular over the years with the collaboration with showbiz celebrities such as Howard Stern, who moved his show after signing an exclusive five-year contract with Sirius. The Howard Stern Show began broadcasting on Sirius Satellite Radio on January 9, 2006.
Through the deal that Howard Stern made with Sirius satellite radio, he got the right to create three channels, of which only two have been founded so far. In fact Howard 100 and Howard 101 are on top of the listeners’ preferences in the entire package provided by the broadcaster. The array of programs covered by Sirius Satellite radio includes news and talk shows, entertainment, music and sports, all with additional subcategories. Thus, under the music section you can select Jazz/Blues, Country, Hip-Hop/R&B orĀ pop. To give a more comprehensive picture to the programs, it suffices to say that under the rock category you have twenty-two channels to choose from.
The programs on Sirius satellite radio are self productions, and lots of shows are hosted by famous people, particularly on the sports channels. The music and entertainment programs are supported by hip hop superstars, deejays and veejays, while political commentators deal with the news and major events in talk shows and bulletins.
In the market approach, Satellite radio depends on a strategy of exclusiveness and this is best reflected in the access to major sports events. Sirius satellite radio is the only broadcaster for all the CFL, NBA and NFL games. In fact, since 2005, there is not other radio program with more live NBA games than Sirius. Other worth mentioning achievements refer to the national horse racing talk show At the Races, as well as to the English Premier League matches that deserve all the attention; moreover, soccer topics are debated daily from Monday to Friday in various talk shows.
Nov/090
Ham Radio Information
For radio hobbyists and people who spend a lot of time broadcasting independently for local communities, amateur radio means ham radio. Public service and recreation are the elements that stimulate the activity of the service participants, furthermore, ham radio proves priceless in times of crisis, emergency or disaster. Estimations indicate a six million people involvement in ham radio, and although they are not broadcasting to make money, their reward is the ability to get on air. The element that makes ham radio stations stand apart is not the lack of professional skill but rather the absence of advertising moments.
Ham radio probably gets back to the 19th century or the beginning of the 20th when ninety amateur stations serviced Canada and the United States. The appearance of ham radio has very much to do with hobby practices and experiments, and very often the contribution made to science and public services has been preponderant. Moreover, lots of people owe their lives to ham radio operators who saved them in emergency cases.
Ham radio covers several types of transmissions and besides the quality FM (frequency modulation) that we are all familiar with, ham radio operators also work on single sideband with a higher transmission reliability or on the Morse code even if technology has come a long way since the days of the radio-telegraph. As for other technological improvements, ham radio meant the introduction of the packet radio and the use digital modes and computers for broadcasting. Last but not least, ham radio operators often use the low power communications on shortwave bands while staying in real-time mode.
Ham radio now has access to OSCARs (orbiting satellites carrying amateur radio) by means of a basic device such as a hand-held transceiver. Another interesting aspect is that ham radio operators use the moon and the aurora borealis to get a good reflection of the radio waves. Some ham radio stations have even got into contact with the International Space Station as the astronauts on board are also licensed as amateur radio operators. Discussions are in fact common practice among the individual hams who get on-air just to join one meeting or another.

