Satellite television

Satellite television distributes programming from communications satellites to receiving dishes connected to televisions. It can deliver broadcast channels across wide areas without relying on terrestrial cable networks.

Satellite uplink: A radio transmission that sends signals from an Earth station to a satellite. Broadcasters send programming to satellites through uplinks.
Digital television: Television transmission that represents picture and sound as digitally encoded data. Modern satellite services carry compressed digital streams rather than analog broadcasts.
Direct-broadcast satellite: A satellite service designed to transmit television directly to home receivers. This service model delivers provider channel packages straight to household dishes.
Cable television: Television programming delivered to subscribers over coaxial or fiber-optic cable networks. Cable competes with satellite using a wired connection to homes.
Communications satellite: An artificial satellite designed to relay or process communications signals. The satellite receives, amplifies or processes, and retransmits television signals.
MPEG transport stream: A container format that multiplexes compressed audio, video, and data for transmission. Satellite multiplexes combine multiple channels into transport streams.
Direct-to-home television: Television delivered by satellite directly to viewers' homes rather than through a local cable operator. It describes the household distribution arrangement used by many satellite providers.
Terrestrial television: Television broadcast from ground-based transmitters to antennas within their coverage areas. Terrestrial broadcasting avoids a dish but typically covers less area per transmitter.
Geostationary orbit: An orbit above Earth's equator in which a satellite appears fixed over one longitude. Many television satellites remain in a stable apparent position for fixed dishes.
Frequency-division multiple access: A method that assigns different frequency bands to separate signals sharing a communications link. Satellite transponders allocate radio spectrum to multiple television carriers.

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