Will Americans pay to turn on the radio?

Len Klein of Cape Cod, Mass., says he loves the choices and uninterrupted, excellent-sounding broadcasts. "I have not listened to a CD in my vehicle since the XM installation [four months ago]," he reports.

And, despite the fears of those in terrestrial radio who worry that satellite service will cut into their listenership, Mr. Klein says he doesn't see it replacing local stations. "When I want the local news and weather, I still dial in my favorite local station," he says.

Programmer Meg Griffin says satellite radio competition might even spur other stations to improve their programming. "We're about bringing something to the plate, not taking something away," she says. "Every new technology is a complement to what's already there. The light bulb didn't put candlemakers out of business."

Says Ms. Scott, "What XM is about is real radio.... It's not just an audio stream. It's about the magic of a disc jockey being in the moment and being able to respond to whatever happens. It really liberates radio."

According to Radio & Record, an industry trade magazine, a PriceWaterhouseCoopers study says satellite radio will have 5 million subscribers paying $630 million in subscriptions by 2006.

"Our goal here, and we take it very seriously ... is really to ... revolutionize radio," says Abrams. "There's no more purely American experience than driving down the freeway, top down, with a great station blaring. We just wanna bring that experience back to America."

After testing both XM and Sirius satellite radio, all I can say is, "Where do I sign up?"

My city has an exceptional Adult Album Alternative (AAA) public radio station, but there are those programming dead zones. And the ability to drive for hours without vainly trying to tune in a decent station or fiddling with CDs at more than 60 m.p.h. is pure joy. Plus, satellite units display artist names and song titles. Gotta love it.

There are drawbacks – each company's hardware is proprietary; you can't yet buy one receiver and get both services or switch between them. They also expect you to spring for receivers and subscriptions for each listening area, which is silly; there should be a deal for multiple subscriptions.

XM's portable plug-and-play unit can be transferred between vehicles and your home, so only one subscription is needed; but it's got limitations: only five channel presets, and a screen too small to show long titles. (Sirius's portable units are still in development).

But the Sirius unit that I tried had only six presets, and a serious danger: It scrolls the titles across the screen, so it's tempting to try to read as you drive – which also happens when you hunt for stations. (XM's unit has a handy remote control.) You can buy XM and Sirius units at Best Buy and Circuit City, and activate them online at www.xmradio.com or www.sirius.com.

As for channels, XM has dynamite stations like XM Café (modern, soft alternative); X Country (alternative country), XMU (new rock); and XM Comedy (uncensored and funny enough to keep me alert on a five-hour drive – a major feat).

But XM's progressive station IDs fall flat; they're a distraction, and the four commercial-laden Clear Channel feeds smack of the deal they are: Clear Channel is a major investor.

Sirius, on the other hand, has E-1-7 (eclectic rock), an AAA station that blends alt-country, alternative, and other formats. It also features more relaxed DJs and fewer commercials. But its comedy channel is really lame, and I heard a bleep. They have a hard-core rap channel, but censored comedy? Well, they say they're still working on content, and the bit I heard may have come pre-bleeped.

I'll probably wait till unit prices come down and allow interchangeability, but I'll definitely be a satellite radio customer. And no, it won't replace my local station, but in towns with lousy radio, it certainly could.

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