File this item in the “what are they thinking?” category. XM Satellite Radio [XMSR] last week announced it added two new music channels that will appear exclusively on its XM Radio Online premium Internet radio service.

The two channels are “The Eye,” which the satellite radio broadcaster describes as Rhythmic Top 40 featuring a mix of contemporary hip hop tracks, and “enLIGHTen!,” which will feature Southern gospel music.

While we at Satellite News understand the concept of putting satellite radio content on the Internet for subscribers to access, we still don’t see the logic of asking both XM subscribers and non-subscribers alike to pay for the privilege of listening to the music online, especially when there are plenty of Internet music options that don’t charge listeners. And with the addition of XM Internet Radio-only channels, the potential cross-marketing opportunities could be lost. If either of these exclusive channels becomes a success, what is the incentive for online-only subscribers to upgrade to a full XM subscription?

(David Butler, XM Satellite Radio, 202/380-4317)