Did A Karmazin Rival 'Save' Sirius XM?

Mel Karmazin

Did CHARLIE ERGEN, described as MEL KARMAZIN's "archenemy," save SIRIUS XM RADIO? Apparently THE NEW YORK POST thinks so, with PETER LAURIA writing that "KARMAZIN said that the poker-loving ERGEN's all-in attempt to win the satellite radio company earlier this year inadvertently turned near-bankrupt SIRIUS into the belle of the ball, with cable and telecommunications suitors lining up to rescue it."

"I don't think it was his strategy to let his interest in [SIRIUS] be known," KARMAZIN said in an interview with THE POST. "But once his name popped out, it gave us an advantage because all his competitors became interested in us because they were worried about what he might do."

Did KARMAZIN do his $530 million deal in FEBRUARY with LIBERTY MEDIA GROUP to avoid ERGEN's move? KARMAZIN said no. The rivalry between the two, says the report, goes back to a stunt by ERGEN when negotiating with KARMAZIN at VIACOM. During heated negotiations, ERGEN had his ECHOSTAR SYSTEMS display KARMAZIN's home number on their screens.

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