For Immediate Release: Updated

Friday September 16, 2005

How Many Stern Subscribers? Now We Know!

For the first time since it began tracking interest in subscriptions to satellite radio by listeners of Howard Stern in the fall of 2004, Bridge Ratings & Research now has enough information to begin projecting actual numbers of subscribers.

The Glendale, California-based ratings and research company has been measuring radio listening and audience behavior in several markets where Howard Stern is heard. In response to queries regarding the potential audience Howard will take with him to the Sirius Satellite service in January of 2006, Bridge Ratings has been surveying Stern listeners in these markets* to determine their interest in subscribing to the service due to Howard's migration.

Bridge Ratings President Dave Van Dyke explains. “It would appear now that Sirius satellite radio will boost its subscriber base by over three-quarters-of a-million in the fourth quarter as our panels indicate not only a high passion-index for Stern’s show and want it for themselves, but many also intend to give Howard for the holidays! This quarter will be the tipping point as Sirius surpasses XM in quarterly subscriber count!”

The following estimates are derived based on a sampling of both Stern core and secondary listeners who spend at least an hour a week listening to the Howard Stern show on their local Stern affiliate. Based on interviews in recent weeks, Bridge Ratings is able to project the number of new Stern subscribers each month.

Click here for Stern Stat:

For the purposes of this survey, Bridge Ratings interviewed both current Stern listeners and those who no longer can hear Stern in their markets.

Conservatively, 10% of those interviewed who said it is “Very Likely” that they will subscribe to Sirius between now and December 31, also intend to give satellite subscriptions as holiday gifts. “Based on our estimate that would project to over 50,000 new “bonus” subscriptions alone” says Van Dyke.

The results reproduced here represent Adults 18+. Based on these recent results, Bridge Ratings is able to project the actual number of Stern listeners who will subscribe in the coming months leading up through the holiday season 2005 and beyond Stern's sign-on in January 2006. The company will continue to track this data on a weekly basis and provide updates on this website.

Bridge Ratings projects that between now and February 2006 over 1,400,000 listeners will become new subscribers to Sirius.

*Howard Stern markets surveyed: Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Boston, St. Louis, Las Vegas, Syracuse, Baltimore and Detroit. 3000 listeners 18+ Adults

Sample error: +/- 1.8%

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