I came across an article today that talked about how desperate Sirius XM must be because they're emailing customers about an opportunity to become a lifetime subscriber.

UPDATE AT THE BOTTOM

Here is the part of the article that touches on Sirius XM:
Sirius XM is sending an email to at least the XM subscribers, offering a lifetime subscription plan (although it doesn’t give many details, including price, and only offers a phone number answered during “business hours,” with no back-up Web page. Any time a company offers a lifetime subscription, you can guess that they’re desperate for cash and worried about losing customers. Why else would they trade ongoing revenue for a $400 single payment, which is under three years worth of subscription revenue? Of course, given the way XM Sirius is going, you have to wonder the company will last that long.

First, this email marketing plan comes off as XM being real sketchy and in dire need to make a quick buck before the FEDS knockdown their door.

Second, Sirius and XM have been offering Lifetime Subscription Plans for as long as I can remember. This is not something new. I doubt their that concerned with losing customers since their churn has had very little fluctuation this past year.

Third, they're not entirely trading ongoing revenue for a $400 single payment because a "Lifetime Subscription" is only good for the life of 3 radios and not your lifetime. Let's say you buy a new radio every 2 years then you're lifetime subscription runs out after 6 years of service. Not only did XM get your $400 6 years earlier to do with what they pleased they are also guaranteed a customer for the next "X" amount of years who will be listening to their service that they in turn can generate more revenue from advertising.

Fourth, let's be honest, if someone shells out $400 for a lifetime subscription to Sirius or XM don't you think they've tried the service out already and enjoyed it? Optimistically we could look at this as a clever marketing plan to say "thank you" to their devoted customers.

Sirius is offering a Lifetime Subscription Plan Promotion as well.

Update

Erik Sherman, who wrote the original article, made an update on his page . Here it is:

[UPDATE: A representative from Sirius XM emailed to say that Sirius had offered lifetime subscriptions to its listeners “for years” and decided to also offer them to XM subscribers. Being an XM subscriber for a number of years, I had never before seen the practice and hadn’t realized that it was established at Sirius. However, I still say that it’s desperation marketing, as the company is on shaky ground and the auto industry, which had been a major outlet for it, make Sirius XM look as stable as IBM.

A reader also sent a snide “you don’t know much about Sirius XM” note along with a link to what I can only guess was his/her blog post. Given that Sirius XM said that XM had not independently offered lifetime subscriptions before now, the sentence “Second, Sirius and XM have been offering Lifetime Subscription Plans for as long as I can remember” would seem to indicate very short term memory, indeed. Although the subscription can only be transferred three times, the assumption that people are buying new radios every two years is, I think, presumptive. I know that I’ve had one XM radio for probably three or four years at least. Even assuming a swap every two years, that would mean a total of eight years of subscription for the $400 price, which is still a pretty steep discount from the list price of $1,243.20 for that period. Actually, make that a dangerous and damaging discount that I’d guess was meant to boost cash on-hand.

As the person wrote, “Optimistically we could look at this as a clever marketing plan to say ‘thank you’ to their devoted customers.” But I find that in business and marketing, optimism is generally another word for wishful thinking.]