With regulatory approval now behind them, a tax-free, all-stock merger of equals (with a combined enterprise value of $11.4 billion) has taken place between Sirius and XM, thus creating a single satellite-based giant of radio programming.

Mel Karmazin, CEO of Sirius will be the new CEO, while Gary Parsons, the Chairman of XM, will remain in that role.

The interesting aspect of this multi-billion dollar transaction is the part that barter played.

Prior to the barter deal, XM was clearly the leader in the number of subscribers as well as forming some substantial revenue sharing agreements with automotive manufacturers to drive additional traffic. Many expected XM to blow Sirius out of the water.

But then Sirius put together the Howard Stern deal (which included a big barter component) and Stern delivered.

Now, a couple of years later we see the results of their brilliant marketing move, as Sirius buys its rival XM for $4.6 billion in stock.

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