The history of satellite TV service providers in the United States goes back farther than you might think. Most people are familiar with popular current providers such as the Dish Network and DirecTV, but very few know how satellite TV has developed and evolved since its earliest beginnings in the 1970s.
The Beginnings of Satellite TV
Thirty years ago there was no such thing as satellite TV service providers, but that was about to change. Several private companies banded together in the early 1970s to launch a series of geosynchronous satellites (geosynchronous means an orbit that keeps the satellite directly above one area of the earth at all times) to transmit signals from an originating source to multiple receiving locations.
In 1976, HBO became the first programmer to deliver satellite programming to cable companies; many other programmers like Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) and the Christian Broadcasting Network (later called The Family Channel) followed suit, and the satellite television industry was poised for tremendous growth.
Big Dishes, Free Programming
As more and more programmers used satellites to deliver their programming to cable companies across the country, a Stanford University professor developed a way to receive those signals in his own home. His receiver dish, later known as a C-band dish for the frequency that it received, was quite large and quite effective. He was able to pick up signals from just about any programmer he wanted because the signals were sent out “in the clear”, or without any encryption.
At one point, the professor sent HBO a check for $100 to pay for the programming he had been receiving and enjoying so much, but much to his surprise, they sent the check back to him. They informed him that they dealt only with cable companies, not individuals. And thus, a television revolution was born.
The professor published a “how to” guide for building a home satellite dish and founded a company to produce the parts for dishes. Initially these systems were quite expensive (up to $10,000 or more) but as the technology improved, the costs dropped dramatically (to $3,000 or less).
Why would anyone want to spend that much money for a C-band home satellite receiver? After all, the dish itself was quite large and unsightly, and required a good deal of space for installation.
The answer lies in several factors. First, because the programming was free, the homeowner only had to make a one-time investment in hardware. There were no additional monthly fees. Second, the signals were extremely crisp and clear because they came directly from the programmer, rather than second- or third-hand from another provider or cable TV system. And third, there were literally hundreds of channels available, a selection that cable companies could not even come close to offering.
C-band dishes were especially popular in rural areas where there was no cable service provider and over the air broadcast signals were weak or even totally absent. As a result, the satellite TV industry surged in popularity and grew quickly.
No More Free Lunch
Of course, all good things come to an end, and it did not take long for satellite TV service providers to realize that there was tremendous value to their programming that was essentially being given away for free to C-band dish owners. They began to lobby Congress for the right to scramble, or encrypt, their signals so that they could no longer be received by dish owners who did not pay for a decoding device. Dish owners hated this idea, naturally, but they simply did not have the organization or influence of large programming companies. Congress passed the Cable Act of 1984, which allowed programmers to encrypt their satellite signals.
Suddenly the satellite programmers were full-fledged satellite TV service providers, with a new (but still small) revenue stream from C-band dish owners. In those days, though, encryption technology was not as sophisticated as it is today, and many dish owners found ways around the encryption or bought bootleg decoders. Theft of service remained a major problem up until the early 1990’s, when digital encryption technology went into widespread use.
Competition Heats Up
As the industry grew, individual programmers realized they could not survive if they all were their own individual satellite TV service providers, so they looked to new companies who were willing to take on that role. The biggest boon to the industry, though, came in the form a technology leap that allowed receiver dishes to shrink significantly in size, to the point where they were small enough to be installed on the roof or outside wall of most homes.
A huge new market was born for direct broadcast satellite (DBS) systems. Many companies jumped into this business, most notably a consortium of four cable TV companies as well as a non-cable associated company. Their services were known, respectively, as Primestar and DIRECTV.
More and more satellite TV service providers entered the market, presenting consumers with a confusing array of services at a wide range of prices. Meanwhile, the pressure to improve the technology and deliver more advanced services meant that providers were pushed to spend more and more money to stay competitive. Inevitably, some could not keep up with the financial demands and only the strongest survived.
Industry Consolidation and Changes in Ownership
A flurry of industry consolidation, changes in ownership, and restructuring led to the emergence of two major satellite TV service providers – DirecTV and Dish Network. Their size and financial strength allowed them to invest in new technologies and rapidly expand their service offerings. Today, DirecTV and Dish Network offer consumers a huge assortment of options, including pay-per-view programming, on-demand programming, music services, satellite radio, high speed internet, and more.
About DirecTV and the Dish Network
The Dish Network and DirecTV are the two major satellite TV service providers in the market today, and for good reason. They each offer a range of services at reasonable prices, and have quite a large customer base.
In the early days of DBS, a major obstacle for the providers was the equipment costs the customers had to absorb in order to get their homes set up with a dish and a receiver. Further complicating the issue, if the customer had more than one TV in their home then they had to purchase a separate receiver for each TV where they wanted to have DBS service. The cost was prohibitive for many potential customers, so DirecTV and the Dish Network looked for ways to lower the start up costs and make it easier for people to switch from cable TV to satellite TV.
The winning strategy, as it turns out, was collaborating with equipment manufacturers and offering free satellite TV systems to customers who would agree to service contracts of up to two years. Over that length of time, the Dish Network and DirecTV were able to recover enough revenue to at least break even on the discounted equipment costs, and often gained substantial additional revenue as customers purchased pay-per-view programming and other extra services.
About the Author:
Julie-Ann Amos is a freelance writer for 1st-Dish-TV.net, a consumer guide
to digital satellite TV.
She has written numerous articles on free
satellite dish TV systems and personally has no preference when it comes to
choosing satellite TV service providers,
as long as she can watch the Science Fiction Channel.
Copyright 2005 1st-Dish-TV.net
Permission is granted to publish this article on your site only if the
author's byline is included and all links are hyperlinked.
There are hundreds or even thousands of scammers in the satellite TV online business, don't get caught by those satellite TV promotion tricks. Satellite TV deals can be a huge bargains or a scary nightmare and it all depends on the satellite TV retailers that you pick.
Often when people are shopping for TV entertainment services, they stuck choosing the right deals between satellite TV and cable TV. The fact is for recent years, the expansion rate of satellite TV had beaten cable TV greatly. Based on recent polls and market research, the explosion of people choosing satellite over cable are due to these common reasons: better picture quality, wider programming selection, increased accessibility, reputable customer service and the cheap price. Besides, the massive advertising campaigns from satellite TV retailers are also one of the main reasons of the rapid growth of satellite TV business.
Comparing the deals: Dish Network vs. DirecTV
Though there are other satellite TV systems (for example, previously Voom and Sky Angel), DirecTV and Dish Network are the twin giants in the satellite TV industry. If you are shopping for satellite TV services, I bet you probably got spinning around on which services to go for. This kind of consumer responses is very common as both DirecTV and Dish Network offer more or less the same deals. Surprisingly, both DirecTV and Dish Network are practically similar -- both offer free satellite TV systems up to 4 rooms, more than 200 program selections, integrated digital video recording (DVR) capabilities, high definition TV (HDTV) capabilities, astonishing picture and sound quality and award-winning 24-hour customer services.
Where they differ is in pricing and programming. Dish Network deals are slightly cheaper, however DirecTV provide a slightly wider programming choices. Dish Network offers more International and movie channels while DirecTV seems more attractive to sports fans as they provide a much better coverage on sports programming (I am sure you heard of the NFL Sunday Tickets, don’t you?).
How does the legal online satellite TV retailer work?
You place an order with an online satellite TV system retailer. You will then choose the number of satellite system you wished to receive (Normally you will get up to 4 free satellite systems if you are a first time customer). At the time of ordering you will schedule a time that a local professional installer can come to your home and install the system. You do not need to choose your programming packages at the time of order. The satellite system will either be shipped to your home before the installation date or the installer will bring it with them. Shipping cost and standard installation fees are normally free of charge.
Why online satellite TV retailer? Why order satellite TV deals online?
Ordering your satellite TV deals online is instant and easy. All you need to do is just a few clicks on your PC and stay at home at the scheduled installation time. The retailers that have been around a few years have this process streamlined for efficiency.
The start up cost for online satellite TV dealers is much lower than the brick and mortal dealers. Thus, online satellite TV dealers offer the best bargains in satellite TV services. In order to win the market share, some online dealers even offer incentive gifts to their customers. Home theater systems, DVD players, digital cameras are given free to win more customers.
Online ordering satellite TV deals sounds great. However, consumers should also aware that there are risks hidden when ordering your satellite TV deals online: Fraudulent websites. Unfortunately, with any hot product come the scammers. Hundreds of 'Satellite TV' websites have popped up, claiming to offer the best satellite dish deals and promotions. Their websites might look professional to lure unsuspecting customers. Most of these scams offer a fake promise on their deals. Extremely low monthly subscription rates, next-day installation, and unlimited number of free satellite systems are some of the common promotion terms. But once a customer signs up they find hidden activation fees, high shipping costs for free extras, installation dates continuously missed or pushed back, as well as outrageous cancellation fees.
Buyers should always beware of all these scammers and do not fall into their traps. Yes, there are a lot of good satellite TV deals online. In fact we believe the best deals are always found online, but the best deals only come when you manage to stay away from those scammers. Always look for authority dealers when you are searching for satellite TV deals. Both Dish Network and DirecTV had several reputable online retailers assigned and you are always recommended to order your satellite systems from them.
To get a dependable online dealer, we suggest checklist below as the minimum requirements. If you would like to view the list of satellite TV dealers that we recommend, we suggest this reference page:
http://www.satellitetvissue.com/freesatellites/dealers.html
Requirements on good online satellite TV dealer:
-In satellite TV business for more than 1 year.
-Websites must provide secure order page and certified website.
-Must be authorized by Dish Network or DirecTV officials.
-No 'hidden' fees- cost charged on credit card is shown clearly.
-Customer service available via phone, live chats or email.
-100% guaranteed. (Full refund if installation fails).
-Testimonial, users review, as well as other authority sites recommendation would be a plus point.
Teddy L.Cc., an experienced freelance internet webmaster/writer, frequent writter on issue regarding satellite TV deals, electronics goods as well as web hosting.Also, you can find more consumer info at this site: Free Dish Network offer.
Do you remember a few years ago when Satellite TV was considered a luxary? Having an installation
team come to your house all day to install one of those huge, ugly dishes in your back yard.
Spending anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 dollars for the luxary of having a dish.
Well, those times have changed.
There are so many satellite television companies out there competing against each other
that cheap satellite tv has become a reality. No more big clunky dishes in your yard, your
not spending a fortune for the hardware and the installation, and the programming subscription
is fairly cheap.
Satellite Television Systems
Here are a list of things you usually get when you purchase a satellite system now...
- A free dish you can mount almost anywhere
- Up to 3 to 4 receivers free with a IR remote control
- Free installation
- Upgraded receivers which allow you to record your favourite shows
- optional HDTV receivers for the high techie
If you shop around you canusually find a company that offers a free dvd player with a
surround sound package equipped.
Cheap Satellite Television
The U.S. and Canada range in price for subscription, anywhere from $32 for 60 channels to
$94 for 215 channels all in digital picture and sound. You get up to 500 movies each month
without commercials, and the option to record. You can even hook it up to an recordable
DVD player and start your own movie collection.You also get 24/7 toll free customer service.
Over 50 pay-per-view channels with high definition programming.
If you act now, most companies offer an introductory rate on most of their promotion packages.
You just have to decide if you want to pay for the cheapest package or the cheapest price per
channel.
I have made a range of cheap satellite companies for you so see if you are interested
HERE
