September 12 In Radio History

In 1970..."Fire and Rain" by James Taylor was released to radio, becoming his first hit single.


In 2001...XM Satellite Radio began service.

The company has its origins in the 1988 formation of the American Mobile Satellite Corporation (AMSC), a consortium of several organizations originally dedicated to satellite broadcasting of telephone, fax, and data signals. In 1992, AMSC established a unit called the American Mobile Radio Corporation dedicated to developing a satellite-based digital radio service; this was spun off as XM Satellite Radio Holdings, Inc. in 1999.

On July 29, 2008, XM and former competitor Sirius Satellite Radio formally completed their merger, following U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval, forming SiriusXM Radio, Inc. with XM Satellite Radio, Inc. as its subsidiary. On November 12, 2008, Sirius and XM began broadcasting with their new, combined channel lineups. On January 13, 2011, XM Satellite Radio, Inc. was dissolved as a separate entity and merged into Sirius XM Radio, Inc.  Prior to its merger with Sirius, XM was the largest satellite radio company in the United States.


In 2013…Inventor Ray Dolby, who pioneered the noise-reduction and surround-sound technologies used in movies, cinemas, personal computers and home theater equipment, died of Alzheimer's disease and leukemia at age 80.