Entrepreneur Resources Your source for small business information
The cable TV made its first breakthrough in the United States in around the 1940s and 1950s when it began providing broadcast signals and seemed a good solution for more reliable signal transmission. Back in the times, these cable providers would construct large antennas for better TV reception. It will be true to say that the cable industry is nearly fifty years old and has evolved to have such immense market penetration. It is now more stable with a robust infrastructure and better capable of delivering high-quality TV services to cope up with the increasing demands in the market. We see Spectrum cable plans or Cox cable TV packages making waves in the market and standing among the most prominent providers of the digital television. Nowadays, users have many options and want to enjoy high-quality video content. Having said that, let us look at the journey of the emergence of cable TV to the point we see it today.
The 1940s-1960s
It was the time when cable TV originated in America. In the 1950s, the cable systems had thousands of subscribers nationwide. They begin to consider providing new options as they were already picking broadcast signals. The ability to receive distant signals allowed providers to look for other options.
By this time in the 1960s, around 800 cable providers were serving the users. Numerous well-reputed cable systems rose and started investing more in the business.
The 1970s-1990s
In the 1970s, FCC came in action and applied certain restrictive policies to limit the cable operators to show movies or various sports events. A policy came in 1972 where restrictions were modified. It was by the end of this decade that as many as nearly 16 million households were able to access cable TV. In the year 1984, the Cable Act came into existence where a framework was designed for the cable industry.
2000 and Onwards
The new millennium followed new plans and hopes. The cable companies started testing services like video on demand, subscription video on demand, interactive TV, and much more. Cable became a quick choice for internet services, as there was a growth in broadband data. The digital TV made a big leap forward in terms of the provision of HDTV, VOD, and other advanced features.
The Recent Times
Nowadays we observe that cable is used as a medium of not only video entertainment but also internet and phone services for millions of users. It will not be wrong to say that the cable providers recreated television entertainment and took it beyond merely broadcast channels. It is possible to carry TV wherever you go with the help of various app services offered by the providers.
There have been huge investments in the cable infrastructure that has resulted in more and more users been able to access cable TV services and also resulted in providing job opportunities to a large number of resources.
Developments in Cable Systems
The main motivation behind the primary changes up-gradation involved in cable TV is more linked to business rather than technology. For instance, during the 1980s, it was because of the business that coaxial cable distribution was replaced with fibre optics. The reason was obvious – optical fibre was more capable of carrying signals to greater distances. This way fewer amplifiers were needed. The outcome was a reduction in maintenance cost and improved signal quality.
HDTV or High Definition Television
High definition television or HDTV was a successful attempt to provide a clear picture display and a three-dimensional experience. Because of its higher resolution as compared to the standard TV systems, it can deliver an improved image quality based on nearly five times greater pixels per frame.
Wrapping Up
The aforementioned discussion gives a brief outlook on how cable television has evolved and reached heights of success as we see it today. There have been collective efforts among the providers and the government in terms of infrastructure, investment, and policies that have resulted in cable TV to reach almost every household and for subscribers to enjoy high image quality. However, the internet has taken the world by storm and has become a platform for countless online video streaming services. But still, television remains to occupy central attention and is a part of every home when it comes to entertainment.
It’s interesting to know that watching television still occupies the central attention of families in their homes. We all have phones in our house so I’m a bit hesitant at first to get our own cable TV since we can watch everything on the internet. Still, I imagine that watching movies or TV series in the living room can be a great bonding moment for our family, so I’ll try looking for providers around our area.
Oh no! That’s a bummer, Tina! If you have any internet at all, Netflix now lets you download their movies and TV shows and then watch them again when you don’t have internet access. So if you could bring a laptop or an iPad to a place where the internet is better, you will still be able to watch your favorite movies and TV shows. ?
Nice post about how long has cable tv been around, I think your post is very helpful for lot of people, Thanks for sharing the information.
Thanks for sharing the information about how to long has cable tv been around, I think your blog is very helpful for lot of people.
The rapid growth of online streaming services is reducing the popularity of cable TV. We still depend on cable TV when we need to watch live sports matches and updated news.