(CelebrityAccess News Service) — XM Satellite Radio has launched its new, 100% commercial-free music programming lineup. XM is now the leading provider of commercial-free music programming in satellite radio. "In 2003, XM established itself as one of the fastest growing entertainment media ever by adding more than one million subscribers," said Hugh Panero, president and CEO of XM Satellite Radio. "Our 2004 commercial- free music lineup will make XM's critically acclaimed programming even more appealing to consumers coast-to-coast."
All XM music channels now broadcast without commercial interruption (previously, half of XM's music channels were commercial-free). New channel additions to XM's music program lineup for 2004 include Highway 16 (XM16), today's top country hits; Fungus (XM53), everything that is punk, including underground, ska, surf and industrial; The Blend (XM25), the best adult contemporary music; and Lucy (XM54), the biggest, most influential songs in alternative history.
XM has a jam-packed schedule of commercial-free music specials planned for February, featuring an unprecedented month-long tribute to the most important band in music history, The Beatles. In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Fab Four's arrival in the United States, XM will air an ad-free "Forty Hours for Forty Years in February" including "The Beatles A to Z," with commentary by XM's Martin Goldsmith, author of the new book "The Beatles Come to America."Other February exclusive specials include more than 220 hours of programming celebrating Black History Month, and a week-long celebration beginning February 2, of this year's Grammy Awards.
XM's 2004 lineup features a total of 121 channels: 68 commercial-free music channels and 32 news, sports, talk, and variety channels. Twenty-one XM Instant Traffic & Weather channels for major metropolitan areas, a first-ever for U.S. satellite radio, launch later this year. All of this programming is available for XM's $9.99 monthly fee. -Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
