You are probably well aware of how streaming services have changed the concept of television in these recent years. There are multiple streaming platforms in this present day, like Netflix, HBO, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and all of which have somewhat taken over the market that was initially dominated by cable TV and for the longest time.
An alternative to streaming services that have taken over the cable TV domain, is Digital TV. Who would’ve thought the era of television would still prevail after all the competition out there? Cable TV providers managed to stay in the running by switching to providing Digital TV services – one that’s bound to give serious competition to the streaming giants.
What’s So Good about Digital TV?
If you already haven’t noticed, several providers across the county have introduced many digital TV package deals for customers to upgrade from the usual Cable TV subscription, because let’s face it: Digital TV is way better. Here are some commonalities that digital TV entails for customers upon subscription.
- International and national television channels including some of the premium networks that you wouldn’t be able to watch on every cable TV subscription. Not to mention, each provider has over a hundred channels!
- Just like streaming services have a library of movies and TV series to choose from, so does Digital TV. Digital TV brings with it an On-Demand Library that lists hundreds of choices of movies and TV series for customers to choose from. It may not be anything like the original content produced by streaming companies themselves, but it is still something additional other than having to flick through TV channels or subscribing to multiple streaming services just to get more content.
- You can now watch TV on the go! Digital TV providers usually feature their own mobile applications, just like that of streaming services – with the exception that on TV apps you can watch live TV too, along with anything from the On Demand library.
- Digital TV also allows users to record live TV, rewind, and pause at any time as well.
Digital TV vs. Cable TV
Here is stating the obvious: Cable TV uses analog signals in order to transmit signals through coaxial cables, whereas Digital TV used analog and digital signals that are sent directly to the TV itself. Unlike Digital TV, cable TV is more restricted in a lot of ways. Customers only get a set of channels that they can watch content from, no matter the number. There are no mobile apps, or any libraries full of options – but of course, most of us would know that since we all grew up in the era of cable TV. There is also no option to add or remove channels freely as you can with Digital TV, instead, subscribers would have to pay extra in order to add more channels to their package.
How Does Digital TV Compare to Streaming Services
Streaming companies clearly have an upper hand as opposed to cable and digital TV. However, that did not stop providers from rolling out multiple Digital TV plans in accordance with their services. Digital TV comes as a much better, and a version that is up to date with technology compared to Cable TV. But what are we missing here?
Digital TV may have its perks of over a hundred TV channels, and an On-Demand library with hundreds of options to pick and choose a movie or TV series from, but what it doesn’t have is original content. Streaming companies have started rolling out their original content – you probably see a category labeled as Netflix Originals or HBO Original when you log onto your profile of the respective services. The original content like most others is copyrighted and solely available on the respective streaming platforms, and that is what gives them an edge over Digital TV. These streaming services are also cheaper than subscribing to Digital TV packages.
However, people tend to mix the two. You can subscribe to a cheaper bundle of Digital TV and have your Streaming service subscription alongside for a wider variety of content to watch. In today’s era, there aren’t several households that resort to Cable or Digital TV – binge-watching a show on your favorite streaming app is much easier given how lifestyles have changed.
Conclusion
So what would you rather prefer? Digital TV or sticking to your Netflix subscription? You can also go for both – but that obviously depends on whether you watch TV channels in general. In households where our parents reside, or generally the older population, you would find that they are more comfortable watching live TV instead of how the younger generation lives on TV series and binge-watching. Nonetheless, Digital TV definitely stands a chance compared to Streaming Platforms – consider cable TV on its way to getting obsolete.