Sample Article: Cable TV

Cable TV is the transmission of television channels or programs on coaxial cable or fixed fiber optics. This technology was made possible because of some limitations in the coverage of broadcast television, which uses over-the-air transmission of radio frequency. Cable TV is the much-preferred type today of broadcasting television programs due to its reliability and wide range of uses. Cable Internet and cable telephone are some of the added services of this infrastructure.

Internet access can also run in coaxial cables used in TV as well as telephone service. Cable Internet is now widely provided by different carriers around the world by utilizing the cable. A small amount of bandwidth is being used by television, therefore leaving available space for Internet and telephone usage.

Telecommunication companies now are continually upgrading their system and replacing old telephone lines into cables so as to accept a broader bandwidth and be used for other cable services that can benefit the company and consumers alike. In some areas, the traditional mode of television broadcasting is still being used due to economic reasons. Laying out cables in densely populated areas is advantageous but if this will be compared to some rural areas wherein the number of homes within a community is sparse, then the company may not get its return of investment on its target time.

Traditional television broadcasting using antenna is still being used today. It is evident in rural areas where houses are wide apart from each other. However, one thing that leads to cable TV discovery is the need to provide service to areas which cannot receive good signal due to interference such as mountains and other natural barrier.

It is a much debated issue before about providing a package to consumers with pre-selected programs rather than package the whole set of channels, which in turn not being used by consumers but still paying for the entire cable package. Today, several cable companies are providing an ala-carte package for consumers that only want a portion of channels in their list of programs. The fee is also much cheaper than getting the whole package.

Interest in Pay-Per-View service was born and the subscription increased since then. It is a type of service wherein individual can request to cable companies to watch a specific movie or a sporting event. Normally for sporting event, it is shown live telecast. For movie, a consumer can request a particular movie that he or she can watch. Technology catches up and the coaxial cables were replaced by fiber optics, which can travel great distances without the use of amplifiers. The signal is much reliable than before and quality significantly improved.

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