SiriusXM said Tuesday it is considering offering new lower cost pricing plans as part of its strategy to win new and younger subscribers.
SiriusXM has already begun limited tests of these lower priced plans. CEO Jennifer Witz said it may offer a package with advertising on music and talk channels, which would be a free plan.
The statements were made during a call with analysts announcing the company’s recent quarterly financial results, which showed a loss of 445,000 satellite radio subscribers and a loss of 64,000 Pandora subscribers.
Chief Financial Officer Tom Barry said, “We continue to expect our subscriber results to improve from 2023 and we should see similar seasonality in 2024 with better year-over-year subscriber performance beginning in the back half of the year.”
The company is placing a lot of emphasis on its 360L platform that merges satellite radio with Pandora streaming for more channels and on-demand features. The 360L platform gets higher conversion rates (from free trial to paid subscribers).
SiriusXM now has over three million self-pay 360L subscribers and 360L is in about 12 million cars on the road so far. Witz said the company is testing reduced plans on this platform. She added that SiriusXM is “building out better personalized marketing capabilities in car, which will start to come really in the second half of this year. [It] is going to be key to improving that awareness …”
Alpine is currently the only aftermarket car audio company offering 360L.
SiriusXM also announced that Hyundai will add 360L in 2025. 360L is also launching on Mercedes-Benz and Subaru vehicles. The Subaru launch includes an over-the-air update for some existing vehicles. 360L, as part of the Android Automotive Operating System, began rolling out to the Nissan Rogue and on the new Ford and Lincoln Digital experience starting with the Lincoln Nautilus, said Witz.
SiriusXM reported that overall revenue for the company rose slightly in the quarter to $2.16 billion, up 1 percent over $21.14 billion over the same quarter (Q1 2023) last year. Earnings rose to $265 million, up from $233 million for the quarter last year.
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