XM, Sirius build steadily

USA TODAY

Both XM, launched in 2001, and Sirius, which first aired in 2002, might be years from breaking even. But the marketplace likes their chances of survival.

XM's stock share price has nearly doubled since May. Sirius' stock, despite a 23% drop Dec. 8 after downgrades from two brokerages, has more than tripled since May.

It's unclear how much sports can help their long-term prospects. Sirius' NFL package helped it add about 182,000 subscribers in this year's third quarter, reports Fortune, which represents a 41% jump from the previous quarter -- but it is still way behind XM's 415,000 new subscribers in the third quarter.

Listeners can now hear XM through a new,7-ounce wearable, $350 MyFi radio. Sirius isalso expected to debut a wearable radio next year.

Such devices, says Legg Mason media analyst Sean Butson, might help satellite radio ''make the case that satellite radio isn't just a car or home product.''

But for now, sports is helping put satellite radio on the map: The sheer announcements of XM's baseball deal and NFL satellite deal ''raised the exposure of these services significantly.''