Delivering subscription television

Subscription television services may be delivered to people's homes using a variety of different technologies. These include microwave, satellite and cable.

Cable television uses cables under the ground or strung along telephone and power poles to carry television signals to the homes of subscribers. These cables are expensive to lay over great distances and most cable networks are in highly populated areas such as cities.

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Satellite television is delivered using communications satellites in orbit around the Earth. Radio signals are sent from a ground-based transmission station up to a satellite where they bounce back to Earth over a large reception area. A satellite dish is required to receive the signal, which can then be decoded and displayed on a television.

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These systems send television signals via radio waves, similar to free-to-air broadcast television. However, they require a line of sight between the sending site and the receiver, where the two points are not blocked by mountains, buildings or other obstructions.

Microwave systems are used in areas where it is not cost effective to lay cables, but where satellite transmission is too expensive.

Learn more about microwave systems