Cable vs Satellite TV

The cable vs Satellite TV battle has been going on since satellite TV was introduced to the public. When you think about the how long this battle has been going on, cable and satellite TV have been at war longer than many wars throughout history. Unfortunately, this will be one war that is not accounted for in the history books.

The first satellite TV signal was zapped from Europe to the Telstar satellite that orbited over North America in 1962. It is hard to believe that this occurred over forty years ago and since then has expanded to unprecedented proportions. But it wasn't until 1975 that RCA created the Satcom1, which was the very first satellite that was developed for use by the three major television networks. Since then, the cable versus satellite TV debate has been going stronger than it had prior to the launch of Satcom 1.

Yet cable television has been around a bit longer than satellite TV, because it made its earliest debut in the United States in 1948 with the implementation of subscription services in 1949. But cable television was not available in many areas, because of interference such as mountains and rural areas too far away for cable lines to be installed. Even now there are some areas that do not have access to Cablevision, because of the cost cable companies would have to pay in order to run cable lines to extremely far distances. A good example is the Appalachian foothills in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Southern Ohio. There are several areas within this region that still do not have access to Cablevision.

But these areas, that are still unable to receive cable, can receive satellite services since the only lines needed are telephone lines. This fact can solve the cable vs. satellite debate for some because they never had a choice before. For others, the process can be a bit more difficult because they actually have a choice. Yet one thing they should realize in the satellite TV vs. cable TV debate is that satellite TV is ahead in the race from analog to digital. Since everyone is required to have a digital TV or set top box to allow their TV to receive a digital signal by 2009, satellite companies are already in the running and winning it.

So with this said, there are clear answers as to who the winner in the satellite vs. cable is. Some prefer to switch over, because they are not happy with their Cablevision service due to poor service or cost. Some prefer satellite, because they don't have cable access. Whatever your circumstances, you can now make a more informed decision! When it comes to cable vs satellite TV, DISH and DIRECTV are the clear winners.