Will Automakers Define Sirius XM’s Fate?

After months of deliberating with the Federal Communications Commission, Liberty Media Corp. (LMCAD) has completed its bid for a majority stake in Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ:SIRI). The media company purchased 50 million shares of Sirius at $3.15 a piece, bringing its total stake to 50.7 percent.

Liberty Media’s chairman, John Malone, had been gunning for a controlling interest in Sirius for a while. Malone believed that former CEO Mel Karmazin, who left in December, wasn’t expanding aggressively or adapting to new technology quickly enough. In a market that has grown increasingly competitive over the past few years, this was apparently inexcusable.

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But as the sole satellite radio provider in the United States, Sirius has enjoyed tremendous success over the past few years. That is, after nearly going bankrupt in 2009 after the financial crisis. Shares are up over 2,770 percent since January of 2009, when they were trading at about a dime a piece. Now, at over $3 per share, investors are being won over by the media company’s potential.

Part of that potential is Sirius XM’s commanding position in the in-car radio market…