Liberty Media has moved another step closer to taking control of SiriusXM, as the FCC has granted approval of Liberty's request to assume the satcaster's broadcast licenses. The FCC announced that it has approved the transfer of control of SiriusXM's licenses to Liberty, which informed the Commission last spring it was aiming to take over the satcaster. Throughout 2012, Liberty gradually increased its share of SiriusXM stocks.

Bloomberg reports that Liberty has said in its filings that it planned to convert preferred securities, as well as buy more shares, to own more than 50 percent of SiriusXM's common stock, within 60 days of gaining FCC approval of the license transfer.

Last summer, Liberty Media head John Malone also confirmed that once his company gains control of SiriusXM, it plans to spin the satcaster off to a new owner.

Meanwhile, Forbes reports that shares of SiriusXM jumped in price on Thursday (1/3) to $3.10/each, the highest price the satcaster has traded at in five years. This has led to speculation that Liberty Media has already begun buying up more SIRI shares to cross the 50 percent threshold. As of 5 p.m. ET, SIRI was trading at $3.08/share.