| The time has come to write the final chapter in the | | | | much more aware of and interested in having a |
| long-standing saga that is the duel between satellite | | | | satellite connection in their home. As the difficulties |
| TV and cable. Both have had their glories and their | | | | associated with having a satellite connection at home |
| drawbacks, and for years now most customers | | | | went disappearing, the accessibility of the technology |
| haven't had the slightest clue about which really is a | | | | became ever greater. For example, whereas the |
| better service. Hence, the continuous reviews about | | | | earlier dish models were gigantic, bulky and |
| the potential benefits and pitfalls of each. Here, we | | | | inconvenient things that cost a small fortune (just for |
| hope to be writing the final installation in this drawn | | | | the hardware), today's satellite dishes are tiny and |
| out story, with conclusive evidence. | | | | sleek apparatuses that are easy to manipulate and |
| What is for sure is that when satellite TV came out | | | | handle. Furthermore, the process of installation itself |
| on the market many years ago, the cable companies | | | | has become easier, with more intelligent mounting |
| didn't think they'd ever really have anything to worry | | | | systems improvised, and a wider general knowledge |
| about. At the time, cable was the clear winner of the | | | | of how to mount the dish (with many customers |
| duel, as they provided a significantly better quality | | | | today successfully and easily putting their own |
| service for lower rates and with higher | | | | service in place). |
| regularity-though these days the story seems to | | | | There reached a point where satellite TV clearly |
| have been turned on its head. Clearly, with cable | | | | surpassed cable as the service of choice among the |
| having been around for a longer time, thereby able to | | | | larger consumer base, and today there are a few |
| have won over consumer confidence earlier than | | | | clear signs of this. For one, from a technological point |
| satellite even had the chance, the race started out | | | | of view, it is notable that satellite providers offer |
| on an uneven footing. Satellite technology had a long | | | | more high def programming in their packages than |
| way to go before it could really pose a danger for | | | | cable providers do-way more, with more than 130 |
| cable providers and the cable industry in general. | | | | channels in high def available on satellite, versus well |
| Nonetheless, with time that seems to have been | | | | below 100 on cable. And to put the icing on the |
| exactly what happened. | | | | proverbial cake here, there is the true voice of the |
| The progress within the satellite TV industry was | | | | people to consider: for many years now customers |
| slow at first, but by the late 1990s it was already | | | | have voted for satellite over cable as their TV |
| obvious that the industry was making notable | | | | service of choice, giving satellite TV the clear edge in |
| advances. The accumulation of minor improvements | | | | this dispute, and until cable receives a higher |
| seems to have culminated in several major | | | | customer satisfaction rating than satellite the story |
| accomplishments, and by this point consumers were | | | | will stay as such. |