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The Changing Face of Television in America.

John Pearce

“Times they are a changing"

The Changing Face of Television in America.

As Bob Dylan once sang, “Times they are a changing”. This statement could easily be applied to the way people are getting their television today.

When we entered into the television market back in 1983, cable was in its’ infancy and the majority of Americans that didn’t live within the city limits were watching TV with an over the air antenna. The VCR rental business was flourishing, both in sales and rentals, and there was a lot of interest in the new kid on the block, the Big Dish, or, C-Band satellite systems.

With an investment of a few thousand dollars, customers living outside the reach of the local cable companies could get dozens of channels, like ESPN, CNN, TBS and premium movie channels like HBO and Disney for free.

The landscape of rural America was changing. The new C-Band dishes were being installed across the countryside, and this new industry was flourishing. But as Bob sang, “Times they are a changing”; they sure did. In 1986 General Instrument introduced a new product to the owners of the big dishes; the VideoCypher.

Now, I know VideoCypher sounds like some sort of poisonous snake, and in fact, it did take a big bite out of this new satellite market. The VideoCypher enabled the programmers like HBO, to encrypt (scramble) their signals, and start to charge customers for their services. Newspapers ran headlines that “The Skys Were Going Dark”. Big dish satellite sales came to a dead stop, and thousands of Americans were faced with having to purchase the new VideoCypher if they wanted to continue to receive the “cable” channels. The demand for quality television programming soon outweighed the objections to pay for it and the big dish sales returned.

It would be a decade later, in 1994 that the American market was introduced to a revolutionary new product, DIRECTV, or, the small, much more affordable Direct Broadcast Satellite Service.

DIRECTV initially sold their product in the big box retail stores for $699, and had 40 channels of basic cable for $19.99 a month. Premium channels like HBO and Showtime were also available. Customers were lining up to purchase the new service and would take it home and install it themselves. At this time, DIRECTV didn’t have the network of contract installers and sub contractors established like they do today. Local satellite dealers filled the gap, and offered sales and installation of the service, but the customer had to pay for their services.

In 1996, Echostar entered the small dish market with their own version of the small dish, DBS service, DISH Network. The field was set for the next 20 years as the small dishes would soon obsolete the big C-Band dishes, and DBS services was accepted as the choice for television service throughout rural America.

Today, satellite and cable is seeing a new competitor in the form of Internet Protocol Television, or IPTV. Providers such as Netflix, Hulu and Amazon are now offering cable programming over high speed internet lines. All though many of these services do not offer “live” programming, they are developing a strong following of customers who are enjoying a multitude of programs at a fraction of the cost of cable and satellite services.

We have found a “NEW-OLD” market re-emerging with these early-opters to the IPTV services. Off-Air Antennas! Yes, we have come full circle back to the technology of the 50s and 60s with millions of customers installing traditional off air antennas to receiver their local news, weather and sports. The National Association of Broadcasters is fighting hard to keep the local networks, ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS and Fox from being resold over the internet to protect the local broadcasters market from eroding. By combining an Off-Air Antenna Service (the local network channels) with a High Speed Internet service and a subscription to one or more of the IPTV providers (NetFlix, HULU..) Millions of Americans are making the switch and dumping the cable or satellite.

The Future??

While many think that this IPTV service combined with off air antenna is the solution, we are finding that it is not the solution for everyone. Yes, many customers that have tried this solution are coming back in to our offices saying that the IPTV services are not delivering the quality of service that they have come to expect from satellite and cable. Many internet providers are struggling with limited bandwidth or even worse, imposing bandwidth limits to deal with the vast amount of data that is required to deliver HDTV content to the masses. Let’s face it, watching a rerun of the World Series, Super Bowl or Academy Awards just isn’t the same as watching it live. Driving to work this morning in Ocala, Florida I saw a Billboard from Cox Cable stating “Our Internet Doesn’t Slow down When You Watch HDTV Programming”. Unfortunately this is the case for many customers that try the IPTV option.

Well, are times really.... a changing? Certainly they are, and what will the future of television in America be?

Stay tuned, as I am sure that the next big thing is just around the corner.

John Pearce

International Satellite & Antenna Service

Ocala, Florida

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