Telus has become the first cell phone company in Canada to offer satellite radio on cell phones, choosing XM as its partner. The service will be provided over Telus’ high-speed data lines, as opposed to using the XM satellites, and therefore can be used anywhere a cell phone can without needing line-of-sight to the southern sky.

The service is available to customers for $15/month, or is included if customers subscribe to the SPARK 25 bundle for $25. It is only available on the Samsung A950 and the LG8100 phones.

While XM Canada currently offers 100 channels, Telus will only stream 20 of them: 18 music channels, as well as XM Comedy and High Voltage, which features XM?s signature shock jocks, and thorn in Howard Stern?s side, Opie & Anthony. XM?s 18 music channels are all commercial-free. Though XM has exclusive deals with the NHL and Major League Baseball, these will not be offered.

One oddity of the deal is that only one channel ? The Verge ? is one of CRTC?s mandated Canadian-produced channels. Satellite radios in Canada require 10 per cent Canadian content, while Telus only offers 5 per cent.

Choosing to use a satellite radio provider to provide customers with commercial-free music from their favourite genre is becoming popular. Rather than having to create their own music content, businesses can outsource to a company that specializes in this service. In the United States, Sprint partnered with Sirius to offer satellite radio on cell phones, while airlines JetBlue and ATA offer passengers XM on their flights, as opposed to traditional airlines that offer their own inflight music. Also, DirecTV customers can get XM on their televisions while Dish Network customers receive Sirius. This deal, however, is the first of its kind in Canada.






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