New York - Sirius Satellite Radio (NASD: SIRI) announced on Tuesday that its shareholders today overwhelmingly voted to approve its previously announced $4.6 billion merger with rival XM Satellite Radio (NASD: XMSR). The proposed merger is still under review by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Justice Department, both of which last week sought additional information from the companies.

While the government approval process has now taken nearly ten months, Sirius still expects the transaction to close by the end of the year.

The company said initial indications were that more than 96% of the shares voted were cast in favor of the transaction.

"The approval by Sirius stockholders of our merger with XM represents a significant step in the approval process, and on behalf of the Board and management team, I want to thank our stockholders for their continued support," said Sirius chairman and CEO Mel Karmazin.

"We look forward to completing the merger by the end of the year and, together with XM, becoming an even stronger competitor in the ever expanding audio entertainment marketplace offering consumers more choices at lower prices."

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http://www.siriusmerger.com