And then you could only see those if you happened to live near an area that had a station or if you had a really powerful antenna. With the advent of cable, those stations became available to just about anyone, as long as you could get cable run to your house. Along with better availability came a cornucopia of programming options-anything from channels dedicated to showing old movies, programming that was just for kids, and even all-whatever networks (music, sports, weather.)
Now we are in the next generation of television availability with the introduction of satellite television. Now location and accessibility to the cable line no longer matters. That's because the programs are beamed directly to your television, wherever that television happens to be. By definition, satellite television is a system in which the signal, once digitized, is transmitted to an orbiting satellite, which receives the signal, amplifies it, then transmits it back to the satellite receivers on earth.
The technology uses advances made since the infancy of satellite dishes. You may recall or even owned the large, expensive movable dishes that would take up most of the yard. They worked in a way similar to modern dishes in that they received a signal from an orbiting satellite. One of the main differences, however, is that those old dishes had to be lined up with the satellite of a particular programmer. To change channels, you had to "search" for another signal by changing the direction the dish pointed. Today's satellite TV systems are much smaller (about twenty-four inches across), carry over 500 channels, and never have to be moved. That is because the satellite TV providers distribute all those channels in one signal.
Currently, about ten percent of all households in America get their television entertainment through satellite. But with the advantages a satellite system has over other options, this number is expected to double in the coming years. One of the main advantages of satellite tv is that customers have an excellent range of programming.
For an overview of various satellite tv options have a look at the Direct TV and Dish Network overviews.
With cable tv options, users are limited to whichever conglomerate owns the rights to that particular region. They are hostage to their channel options as well as their prices. Every satellite subscriber has at least two providers to choose from, DirecTV and DISH Network.
Consumers should look at what each has to offer, compare prices and packages, and make an informed decision on which is best suited to their individual needs. Whichever provider you choose, however, you will have made the transition into the next generation of television entertainment.
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