HEAVENLY DEAL Edit
SIRIUS, XM set to confirm merger plan today

Have you noticed the XM and Sirius Satellite Radio competitors are running far fewer national ads? Sure, Howard Stern still stumps for Sirius on Letterman, but that’s because he’s the King of Self Promotion.

The two companies have gotten awful quiet because, as the NY Post is reporting today, they plan on making beautiful, non-terrestrial music together.

The Post is hedging its bets, saying this could all fall apart at any moment, but an equal-partners merger could save both companies millions of dollars a year and it should end a lot of consumer confusion and, perhaps help improve both services.

It’s official—pending shareholder approval—XM and Sirius will merge in a huge, $13 billion dollar deal. Listeners will get Howard and Oprah, but the real winners appear to be Mel Karmazin and Gary Parsons. Here’s how a release I read put it:

Mel Karmazin, currently Chief Executive Officer of SIRIUS, will become Chief Executive Officer of the combined company and Gary Parsons, currently Chairman of XM, will become Chairman of the combined company.