Studies have shown that about 90% of all US households have access to free over-the-air (OTA) television. All this adds up to the fact that Cable TV is an unnecessary cost for most US homes. Yearly savings are now at an average of $1,400 per home.
The average price of the typical US household’s cable TV subscription is around $80 or so a month. Recent studies have shown that price is increasing by approximately 5% per year. At that rate, the Cable TV value is far outweighed by its cost. OTA TV on the other hand is basically free after purchasing the right DTV antenna for your home’s location.
With over-the-air television, you still have access to your favorite local TV stations such as CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox and The CW. The crazy part here is that the channels you get over-the-air are actually broadcasted in higher quality than what you get if you were tuning into the exact same channel through your cable TV service provider. The reason for this is simple (and deceiving): The US government allows cable TV providers to downgrade their broadcasts by as much as 30% (30%!!) in order to save on transmission costs. OTA TV does not have that restriction, so you end up getting crystal clear TV every time. That is insane if you think about it: You pay for worse quality cable TV than is available to you freely over the air.
In addition to all the free OTA network TV stations you receive, you also get many religious, shopping and old movie channels. This is done through a technology called multicasting, where broadcasters can actually send many signals within their one broadcast signal. This means that while channel 11.1 might be your normal NBC affiliate, you are also receiving 11.2, 11.3 and 11.4 channels that have programming that is unique and different (and still free).
Cable TV is becoming more and more of a certified rip-off. The more customers know that there are free – and better quality – alternatives out there, the better. Check out NoCable.org to find the best DTV antennas for you area.
Leave a Reply