VOD content aggregator, iN DEMAND, has signed a three-year deal with US radio "shock jock," Howard Stern, that gives it the exclusive US rights to televise his planned Sirius Satellite Radio show. The three- year deal, whose financial terms have not been disclosed, will see iN DEMAND distributing a subscription VOD service based on the show; the deal also gives iN DEMAND the rights to Stern's remaining shows on terrestrial radio (he will take his show to satellite in January). The company says that it has already reached agreements with Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Cox to offer the new SVOD service on their digital platforms. It has not yet revealed how much the service, which will launch later this year, will cost. Stern's raunchy and controversial show (as well as frequent guest appearances by porn stars and strippers, it features biting satire of the entertainment industry, and, more recently, criticism of the Bush administration) has resulted in fines being levied by the Federal Communications Commission on Infinity Broadcasting, the Viacom-subsidiary that distributes it. While E! Entertainment until recently carried a censored version of the show (which, while the highest-rated program on the network, apparently had difficulty attracting advertisers, due to its controversial content), making the show available on SVOD is a natural move for Stern, as the show will no longer be dependent on advertising or subject to FCC content regulations.
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