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Satellite is often considered one of the biggest improvements in broadcasting since the introduction of the FM band. Satellite radio is also called subscription radio or pay-radio because it is only available trough subscription to one of the satellite radio providing companies.

Satellite follows a concept similar to cable television by providing a very wide range of programs which are not available in the traditional FM or AM format for a fee.

Satellite uses satellites to deliver radio programs to subscribers. The radio signal is broadcasted from Earth based stations to communicational satellites, which then redirect the signal to satellite radio receivers. The radio signal is broadcasted by communication satellites to a much larger area than traditional terrestrial radio antennas.

For example, satellite is available al across the continental area of the United States. Satellite radio is available now in most parts of the world trough services provided by companies like WorldSpace (in Europe, Asia and Africa), Sirius and XM Radio (in North America).

The signal you receive using satellite radio is digital, which means that it is always clear and static-free, which is one of the great advantages of satellite radio. Another great thing about satellite is that it is almost completely commercial-free.

To begin listening to satellite radio you will need the actual satellite (also known as tuner or receiver), a satellite antenna (which is often incorporated in the satellite radio) and a subscription to the service you choose. There are several types of satellite from which you can choose.

One of them is the dedicated car or home radio, which play trough your car or home stereo. A second option is the plug-and-play radio, which can be used in your car, as well as in your home by paying a single subscription. Your third option is the portable radio, which has rechargeable battery, a built-in antenna and you can listen to it wherever you go using headphones.

The signals offered by different satellite radio companies are proprietary, which means that you will need different hardware for receiving, decoding and playback, depending on your subscription. Each satellite receiver has its own serial number called Radio ID.

When you get your subscription, you will also get an activation code for your receiver. Besides the actual radio programs, satellite transmits metadata that contains the name of the artist, the title of the song or program, as well as the name of the channel. This makes it easier for you to decide which channel to listen to and which program to choose.

Satellite radio services provide the subscriber with more than 100 programs that vary in content from rock and jazz to rap and classical music. But satellite utility reaches far beyond listening to your favorite music without the interruption of those annoying commercials.

Satellite also offers exclusive sports programs, cultural and educational shows, news and talk-shows. Some of the celebrities that have moved their shows from free radio to satellite radio include Howard Stern, Opie and Anthony, Bob Edwards and Martha Stewart. Unlike terrestrial radio, satellite is not affected by bad weather or even calamities.

At first, many people wondered why they should pay for radio if they can get it free. However, satellite radio attracts more and more people every year due to its great advantages: no commercials, extensive reach, theme programs and exceptional quality of sound.

http://www.danielmillions.com
Daniel Millions

First of all, unlike earlier satellite communications which relied on a motorized dish to chase the mobile satellites across the sky, modern satellites are placed into a geosynchronous orbit about 37,000 km (22,300 miles) up. This means that they always remain above the same point on the earth’s surface. That way, all dishes on the earth can be pointed at a fixed location, and the satellite will always be there.

The signal to be broadcast originates at an “uplink center”, which collects nationwide programming from cable television networks and local programming from broadcast networks and encrypts it so that the programming cannot be intercepted by non-paying users. The uplink facility uses a huge dish, 9 to 12 meters (or 30 to 40 feet) wide, to accurately send a high-strength signal to the orbiting satellite.

The satellite, in turn, converts the signal to a different microwave frequency band, so that the downlink doesn’t cause interference with the uplink. The two most common frequencies used in United States satellite tv broadcasts are the “C-band” (4 to 6 GHz) and the “Ku band” (12 to 18 GHz).

After traveling more than 50,000 miles, and being converted in between, the signal that arrives at the receiving dish on the outside of the consumer’s home is fairly weak. It is focused by a bowl-shaped parabolic dish onto a device in the center called a “feed horn”, which channels the signal to a “low-noise block downconverter” (LNB) which filters out unwanted interference, and sometimes converts it to yet another frequency before amplifying it and sending it to the satellite receiver box inside the house through a coaxial cable.

The satellite receiver box converts the signal to an analog television, audio or data signal. The receiver may be equipped to decrypt the coded signal itself, or it may require a separate box or a “smart card” plug-in (either to the receiver box or to the television to perform the decoding. A single receiver can serve only one television or computer; multiple receivers must be purchased to provide signal to multiple devices, including watching one channel and recording on another.

Many receivers also include integrated digital video recorders (DVR), allowing them to rewind and pause live television, and to record and store their favorite shows on a built-in hard drive. There are also increasing numbers of high-definition television (HDTV) satellite receivers and DVRs available.

Newer technologies being integrated into the system include pay-per-view functionality, interactive television channels, and video-on-demand (VOD) channels.

The competition for between satellite tv providers, and between satellite and cable providers, is quite fierce. The advantages of being the first to provide new features are driving the pace of invention among satellite technology providers, so we can expect to see many more breakthroughs in the near future.

Troy Degarnham is the author and webmaster of http://www.directv-direct-tv.info, an informative website about Direct TV. Extensive help on Directv receivers, DVR, Channels, Internet, Packages, Installation and High Definition TV can be found here – http://www.directv-direct-tv.info

If you’re like me, I can’t seem to do anything just one thing at a time. I have to be able to do multiple things all the time and that includes watching sports events. Watching one sports event at a time just doesn’t work for me, I want to watch multiple sports events and Satellite Sports TV with the right TV makes it easy.

Using either a split screen picture, picture-in-picture (PIP), or multiple televisions you can watch several sports events at the same time. In the world of sports, this is really great because you can watch different sports events at the same time and then be able to switch between the sports events to watch the one with the action at the moment.

Today watching several sports events at the same time is a very simple process. To setup your own sports theater, you need a satellite TV receiver with multiple sports channels and a TV setup to display multiple sports channels. Satellite TV Sports allow you to have multiple sports programs on the same TV or separate TV’s at the same time.

If you want more than two sports programs at once, Sports Satellite TV also has packages where you can add additional TV’s, up to four per dish, onto one satellite system. This means you can be watching four different sports programs at once. Being able to watch four sports events continuously can really make you a sports authority. Being a sports authority means you can talk sports with anybody and having seen the sports event you will know what is actually happening.

Without a huge amount of money, you can watch up to four sports programs at the same time and do it within a reasonable budget. There are several different ways you can watch multiple sports programs.

One is using several TV’s and the correct satellite TV receiver to watch two to four sports channels at the same time. Satellite TV providers have receivers that will do either two TV’s or split screen of two channels on the same TV. Using this kind of satellite receiver, you can use a big screen TV to do side-by-side split screen or use multiple smaller TV’s to watch different receiver channels at the same time.

So, if you really want to be “The Sports Authority” and get all the sports events that you can handle, then going with satellite and multiple TV images is really the way to go. The two main things to look at are the TV’s and satellite TV receiver being used. Dish network provides several options including a high-definition DVR system that allows you to do split-screen automatically from the unit itself. This means using your existing TV, you can watch different sports events right on the screen at the same time.

If you want to have more sports, you can use separate receivers and multiple TV’s to get up to four sports events from one satellite dish. TV’s like the Mitsubishi 65 inch big-screen allow you to have split screen right on the television in a native mode. This means you can have multiple satellite inputs viewed on two screens and switch between sports events on the two sides. By setting up favorites on your satellite remote, you can then quickly flip between different sports events on each one of the split-screen sides.

To get even more events you can either add additional TV’s or get a different kind of TV that handles what is known as picture-in-picture. This will allow you to have multiple sports events on the screen at the same time. These TV’s tend to cost a bit more money and some models are a little problematic. So be careful with which TV’s you select for this particular methodology, but it can be great for watching multiple sports events.

The lesser expensive method is to simply pick up some low-end TV’s to use as side monitors and have your main television showing the sports program you want to watch at the moment. Use the side TV’s to monitor other sports programs on different receivers and switch to the sports event with action on the main TV when you see it happening on one of the monitors.

Using satellite TV receivers and a few TV’s, you can have a home Sports Theater that will make you “The Sports Authority”. So put your Sports Theater together now and start having those sports parties with all your friends.

Click the following link to get a free diagram showing how to configure a Satellite TV Sports Theater http://www.justaboutsatellite.com/satellite-tv-dish-network-101.php

The date has been set for the first Digital TV switchover in the UK. The analogue TV signal will be turned off from 17 October in Whitehaven area of western Cumbria. First to go will be BBC2 before being followed by the remaining analogue channels on November 14. The move means that the 25,000 residents of Whitehaven will have to switch to Digital TV by those dates in order to keep receiving TV.

In order to receive Digital TV people will need to purchase a Freeview set-top box or subscribe to satellite, cable or broadband TV in order to keep viewing TV. New equipment, installation and support will be given to people over 75, those with significant disabilities and the blind. The assistance will cost 40 pounds, or will be free for eligible people who are also on pension credit, job seeker’s allowance or income support.

Letters are being sent to everyone in the area explaining how the Digital TV switchover will work and what they need to do to keep viewing TV. On screen messages will also appear on analogue channels from May warning viewers that the analogue signal will be turned off in the next few months.

The Digital TV switchover will then be carried out region by region, with the rest of the Borders the next to have its analogue signal switched off, beginning at the end of 2008. By the end of 2012 the analogue signal will have been turned off across the whole of the country meaning everyone must have switched over to Digital TV in order to keep viewing TV.

Broadcasting minister Shaun Woodward said: “We’ve been fully engaged with preparing Whitehaven for a long time and it will – I underline that – be a success. Nobody in Whitehaven will be left behind because it is critical everybody understands it is happening.”

However, concerns have been raised as only 27% of households in the affected area, almost 7,000 homes, have yet to switch to digital. This is largely because Whitehaven cannot yet receive Freeview and so satellite has been the only option for residents.

There have also been concerns that many people, particularly pensioners, do not know enough about the Digital TV switchover and that more needs to be done for them. Age Concern’s director general Gordon Lishman said: “We will continue to champion the need for additional support for all older people who need it, not just the over 75s, and for a range of technology to be made available through the scheme. Measures must also be put in place so that vulnerable people are not exploited by rogue traders during the switchover.”

Guide to TV discusses television options for residential customers, primarily for the UK market. Find out more about getting the best option for your home at http://www.guide-to-tv.com