Howard Stern new contract with SiriusXM?
SiriusXM executives feel that they’ll “get to the right place” with Howard Stern as contract negotiations heat up.
Speaking at a Bank of America conference Wednesday, Scott Greenstein, president and chief content officer and SiriusXM, noted the importance of Stern’s show for the company. The goal is to have him stay at SiriusXM, but Greenstein also cautioned that the deal would have to “make sense.”
“So Howard, for all these years and right up until now, is as important a content, single piece of content as we’ve had from the sense of being a lightning rod to get awareness for the service and publicity and all of that. He’s the best interviewer out there, period, bar none. And we’ve always had a series, as all of you know, of renewals. With any talent at that level, you’re always going to have an extended period of negotiations. We’ve been pretty lucky all these years. We’d love them to stay. It certainly has to make sense, but we feel pretty good that we’ve done this before, and we’ll see where it goes,” Greenstein said, via Hollywood Reporter.
“I think he’s been core to our platform for over 20 years. So I’m confident we’ll get to the right place,” CEO and director Jennifer Witz added.
Rumors had floated this summer about SiriusXM not wanting to renew Stern’s contract, amid his high price tag and his less frequent broadcasting schedule.
Stern, has also been long-rumored to be retiring after his decades-long career as a talk show host. Stern’s current five-year deal is up at the end of 2025 and was estimated to be worth $100 million a year.
Stern had stated that he would address the rumors on his show September 2nd, but he delayed his return and his comments on the rumors until September 8th.
When deciding whether to sign new talent or renew existing contracts, Greenstein mentioned that the company considers several factors. These include the number of hours listened, advertising revenue, social media presence, and publicity. Additionally, they assess the overall significance of the individual to the service or their specific genre.
Could Howard Stern Land at Netflix or Another Streamer?
As negotiations drag on, industry insiders have speculated about what a post-SiriusXM future could look like for Howard Stern. While the satellite radio giant remains his home for now, platforms like Netflix, Amazon, or even YouTube have been floated as potential landing spots if a deal cannot be reached. Stern has long resisted video-first platforms, but his library of celebrity interviews could make an attractive draw for streaming services that are constantly looking for exclusive, personality-driven content. He already uploads YouTube clips.
Netflix has already experimented with talk show formats with projects from David Letterman and Chelsea Handler, proving there is an audience for long-form interviews outside of traditional television or radio. Amazon’s Prime Video and Spotify, which invested heavily in Joe Rogan’s podcast, are also seen as viable options if Stern were to test the waters. Even Apple TV+ has begun to explore live event-style programming with baseball in recent years, making Stern’s name recognition a potential fit.
Of course, the question remains whether Stern would want to adapt his style to a video-centric world, as he hasn’t done it in years after his E and Howard On Demand broadcasts ended. His long history of pushing boundaries, combined with a fiercely loyal fanbase, suggests that if he did walk away from SiriusXM, he wouldn’t lack for suitors. Where do you want to see Howard go? Let us know in the comments.
