Sirius XM On The HTC Aria? AT&T Says, Sorry, You Can’t Run It

Here’s one more sign that AT&T (T) is worried about wireless network capacity.

With the huge success of the Apple (AAPL) iPhone, AT&T has been slower than other carriers to give full support to Android-based phones. Until recently, the only option the company offered was the Motorola (MOT) Backflip. But AT&T has recently added a second phone, the HTC Aria.

Computerworld notes that with both phones, AT&T has removed a key attribute of Android: the ability to install unofficial apps not offered in the Android Market, the platform’s equivalent of the iPhone App Store. The more open nature of Android is actually a key differentiator from the iPhone, which can only run software offered through the App Store.

Anyway, as it turns out, that effectively blocks the Sirius XM (SIRI) Android app from running on the Aria, the Sirius fanblog Satellite Radio Playground notes. As the post notes, the app isn’t offered via the Android Market, for some reason. Which means that, without some creative hacking, you can’t run it on the Aria.

This isn’t a big issue for Sirius, but it no doubt will irritate some users. More than anything it seems to be one more sign that AT&T is leery about adding more heavy bandwidth applications its its already over-taxed wireless network.

Update: Actually, AT&T today announced that it will add yet another Android phone the Samsung Captivate. The company said the phone will be available “in the coming months.”