Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming - What's The Difference - Broadband Now - GOOD

4/17/2020 Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming: What's the Difference?
- Broadband Now
Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming: What’s the

Di erence?
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
By Tyler Cooper
August 23, 2016
Understanding the di erence between Cable TV, Sattelite TV, IPTV, and OTT (over-the-top)
streaming services can be tricky — particularly as content providers scramble to o er bundled
services that blur the line between Internet and broadcast media.
While cable subscription numbers have been tailing o in favor of alternatives like Net ix and Hulu,
the video-consumption industry on the whole has only grown. [1] There are more ways to tune into
our favorite shows than ever before.
More choices translate to more power for consumers, but only if you take a moment to understand
the di erences between the various types of TV connection available on the market today. When
shopping for bundled internet service in Dallas, for example, opting for OTT rather than cable can
make the di erence between a $45/mo bill and a $145/mo bill.
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Our goal in this post is to walk you through the basics of each “ avor” of television, explaining both
how they work and how to decide which is best for you and your household.
In the rst section we’ll cover the basics everyone should know. In the second, we’ll dive into more
detailed descriptions of how each network operates.
First, some quick de nitions:
https://broadbandnow.com/report/cable-vs-satellite-vs-iptv-vs-ott-streaming/ 1/16
4/17/2020 Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming: What's the Difference? - Broadband Now
THE FOUR FLAVORS OF TELEVISION

Sattelite TV: Television from providers like DirecTV, delivered via radio waves.
Cable TV: Television from providers like Time Warner Cable, delivered via coaxial cable
connection.
IPTV (Internet Protocol Television): Television from providers like Prism TV, delivered over the
Internet via a privately-managed network.
OTT Streaming: Television from third-party services like Net ix and YouTube, delivered over the
open Internet.
SECTION I: TV BASICS
Image source: Flickr
There are essentially two ways to get television content in your home: you can tune in to broadcast
networks, or you can request streamed content via Internet networks.
Broadcast networks include:
Sattelite TV
Cable TV
As the name suggests, broadcast networks operate by broadcasting content from a central point.
In the case of cable, content is broadcast through a dedicated coaxial cable network. In the case of
satellite, it comes as radio waves that you pick up with a satellite dish (or cable box) on top of your
house.
Cable and satellite both function by letting you “tune in” to speci c channels within that
signal. The primary di erence is that cable comes through a wired connection while satellite is
wireless (until it reaches your house, anyway).
Internet networks include:
IPTV
OTT Streaming
Internet networks di er from cable and satellite by o ering content through the same client-server
model that delivers your email, websites, and other Internet-based services. (IP stands for Internet
Protocol, the “language” used to transfer packets of data between computers attached to the
Internet network.)
In both cases, the consumer requests and receives content via Internet Protocol. The primary
di erence between IPTV and OTT streaming is that OTT streamed content comes over the same
open, unmanaged network as your email and web browsing while IPTV uses a private,
dedicated network to deliver more consistent service.
Unlike cable or satellite where content is broadcast in real time, IPTV and OTT streaming services
store programming on servers (whether that’s Net ix or an IPTV subscription like U-Verse),
allowing users to request the content over the Internet at any time.
PROS AND CONS FOR CONSUMERS

For most of us, the cost and functionality of home TV is more important than understanding the nuts
and bolts. With that in mind, here’s a quick overview of each option:
CABLE TV
Pros:
Quality: Dedicated line for high-quality video with no “bu ering.”
Programming: Hundreds of channels, with programs available date of release.
Frequently bundled with broadband cable Internet for a lower price.
Cons:
Availability: Only available near service providers.
Cost: Generally higher than satellite, IPTV, and OTT streaming.
Convenience: Requires a separate device to record programming for view-on-demand.
SATELLITE TV
Pros:
Programming: Comparable to cable, available date of release.
Availability: Coverage virtually everywhere in the US.

Price: Generally lower than cable, and you can pick up some channels free with a general-
purpose dish.
Cons:
Quality: Constant broadcast means no service interruption, although storms can cause outage
depending on setup.
Convenience: Requires a separate device to record programming for view-on-demand.
OTT STREAMING
Pros:
Price: Monthly prices as lows as $5, with much free content on YouTube and Hulu.
Installation: All you need is a laptop or phone. (Having a streaming TV box like the Roku or Apple
TV enhances the experience, though.)
Programming: Wide choice of providers, with Net ix and others now o ering original
programming similar to cable.
Cons:
Quality: Subject to Internet speed, with “bu ering” and other wait-times common for slow
connections and peak-hour viewing.
Programming: While most shows can be found via major streaming services, some are cable-only
and they generally don’t reach OTT streaming until the end of the season.
Data caps: Many ISPs now have limits on how much data you can consume, putting a limit on
how much you can watch each month. (Yes, even with “unlimited” plans.)
IPTV
Pros:
Quality: High-quality video with fewer interruptions than OTT streaming due to privately
managed content delivery network.
Programming: View-on-demand and get shows date of release.
Installation: requires no special installation aside from a set-top box, assuming you already have
broadband Internet.
Cons:
Price: Sold as a subscription at comparable rates to cable TV.
Quality: Since it comes over the Internet, it can get slowed down during peak hours.
SECTION II: TELEVISION NETWORKS IN DETAIL

Now that you understand the basics, let’s jump into the details of how each network works for a
deeper understanding of what makes each TV option unique.
CABLE TV
Coaxial cable: the transport medium for cable TV. Image source: Wikimedia Commons
Most modern cable systems are hybrid ber-coaxial networks, essentially the same as the
hybrid ber-coaxial network that delivers broadband cable Internet to your house.
The signal starts in satellite communication systems, then gets picked up by receivers at your cable
provider’s local distribution facility (termed the “headend”). From there, the radio frequency signal
that constitutes all the cable channels on o er is modulated for transmission through ber, which
transmits signal ultra-fast in the form of light.
Just like your Internet data, cable content travels most of the distance between the provider
and your TV via ber-optic cables, switching over to coaxial copper cables once it reaches a node
in your local neighborhood. This is why cable connections are considered shared connections
— you can imagine the main ber line as a tree, with individual copper coaxial cables as the
“branches” that spread out to the households in your neighborhood.
At the local node, the signal is demodulated to enter the coaxial cable that stretches to your
residence. Once there, either a set-top box from your cable company or the television itself
decodes the signal and displays the data as video and audio on the television.
When you switch channels, what you’re actually doing is “tuning in” to the various frequencies
included in your cable plan.
FEATURES UNIQUE TO CABLE TV

So how does the cable company stop subscribers from accessing all the channels broadcast?
Before digital signal became the norm the answer was scrambled signals, but in the digital age
subscription access is managed via encryption. Signal is encrypted before it leaves the headend,
and decrypted by keys on the user’s end. The situation is similar to web security, with a wide
variety of encryption styles that change frequently to thwart hackers. [2]
Note: the cable TV delivery process di ers for analog cable signal, phased out starting in the early
2000s. Virtually all cable TV on the market is now digital. [3]
SATELLITE TV
Satellite TV in relation to other broadcast technologies. Image source: Wikipedia
Unlike cable TV, where the signal originates wirelessly before being distributed by a wired network,
satellite TV is wireless for the entire journey. There are two main types of satellite TV on market
today: TVRO (television receive-only) and DBS (direct broadcast satellite, or “direct to home”
DBSTV). Both function by picking up radio signals broadcast from space satellites.
In broad terms, TVRO is the older kind and DBS is the newer kind. TVRO picks up signal with a ten-
foot dish in your yard, as opposed to DBS, which uses a much smaller dish on your roof. DBS is
able to save space on dish size by using 100% digital, high-frequency broadcasts (as opposed to
low-frequency, digital/analog TVRO broadcasts). Satellite TV is sandwiched between cell phone
signal and radar systems within 3–30 GHz.
Once your satellite dish has picked up the signal, it’s generally decoded by a set-top box to allow
the consumer to “tune in” to di erent channels, much like cable TV. As with cable, signals are
frequently encrypted to deter theft.
FEATURES UNIQUE TO SATELLITE TV
Image source: Wikimedia Commons
The biggest problem with DBS is that higher-frequency bands are often more sensitive to
weather interruptions. However, the fact that it’s available essentially everywhere due to the
pervasiveness of satellite radio signals often makes it the best choice for consumers in rural
areas.
OTT STREAMING
Net ix: the most recognizable OTT content provider. Image source: The Broadcast Bridge
Over-the-top (OTT) content providers like Hulu and Net ix di er from broadcast and IPTV in that
the content comes from a third-party provider over the general, public Internet. For example:
consumers pay cable TV companies, and they deliver cable TV via their cable infrastructure. With
OTT content, a consumer with cable broadband acquires content from a third-party company, but
the content is delivered via the same cable infrastructure as data.
Viewing high-quality video over the same broadband connection as your email and web browsing
creates some technical challenges. However, advances in broadband and ber technologies have
quickly brought down the barrier to entry; as of 2015, over 70% of Internet tra c in the US was
streamed video and audio content, signaling that OTT streaming is here to stay. [4]
FEATURES UNIQUE TO OTT STREAMING

Because OTT content is delivered via the public Internet rather than dedicated CDNs like IPTV, it is
subject to all the same blockages and limitations as your regular internet. (Potentially the biggest
limitation being the implementation of data caps by ISPs.) Long bu ering times, slow speeds during
peak Internet usage hours, and poorly-con gured home Wi-Fi networks all contribute to slowing
down the quality of OTT content streams.
Network limitations like these have driven the development of complex streaming data
management systems. Streaming video content is very di erent from a generic data download —
say, an email attachment or high-def image, where you wait patiently while a single le downloads
in its entirety.
Streamed content splits the video le into smaller chunks and delivers them one by one
chronologically so that you can begin watching almost immediately. (This is why you
sometimes run into “bu ering” when your viewing rate accidentally catches up with the stream
speed in cases of network blockage.)
OTT content providers deliver video content in three “layers” to ensure the optimal viewing
experience over unpredictable network connections: a core video le, a container format for
splitting the data into chunks, and a time-based transfer protocol that feeds the “chunks” in a
continual stream.
IPTV
IPTV: integrated with your home network. Image source: Wikimedia Commons
You can think of IPTV as a hybrid between an OTT content provider and a cable TV provider.
Essentially, IPTV is a formally structured subscription-based digital TV service available to
consumers from ISPs.
IPTV has a lot of similarities to the OTT content streams consumers enjoy from companies like
Hulu and Net ix. In both cases, the content is delivered via the Internet and streamed on
demand. The main di erence between ordering content via IPTV and clicking “play” on YouTube is
that IPTV uses a private, managed content delivery network (CDN) to achieve a higher quality of
service. Rather than streaming content directly to your browser, IPTV content goes from your
router to a set-top box to display on your TV.
Since your service provider is responsible for delivering your broadband Internet anyway, providing
a stable and well-managed CDN is much more realistic than using third-party that try to optimize
stream quality from “outside” the network, as with Net ix or Hulu.
Overall, the goal of IPTV is to allow you to consume TV content over the Internet without
seeing any of these:
Your enemy: the dreaded bu ering icon. Image source: YouTube
FEATURES UNIQUE TO IPTV

While the word “streaming” suggests a scenario where video content is owing smoothly from one
place to another, the reality of how IPTV video content reaches your TV over the Internet is a little
more complicated.
Like all data delivered via Internet Protocol, IPTV uses a process known as packet switching to
encode video into small chunks of data and send them piecemeal to designated IP addresses
(speci cally, the IP address of your computer or set-top box when you request content). The
process is the same for VOIP, which delivers telephone-type voice communications over Internet
Protocol. Again, what di erentiates IPTV from generic streaming is that it comes to the consumer
over a privately managed CDN, resulting in overall higher quality of service.
The other big di erence between IPTV and other video content delivered via the Internet is that
IPTV is a paid subscription service direct from the telecom company or ISP, much like cable or
satellite. This helps pay for the CDN, and delivers a TV experience more similar to traditional
broadcast TV, albeit with interactive functionality built-in.
Because IPTV content is moving both upstream and downstream, IPTV allows for interactivity
similar to what you get with a smart TV including pause, play, rewind, and view-on-demand.
LOOKING FORWARD
Image source: SmartWorld
As OTT streaming services like Net ix continue to gobble up a larger share of the TV market, cable and
telecom companies are sure to continue introducing compelling new IPTV alternatives based on their
own infrastructures.
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That’s not to say cable and satellite will go the way of the dinosaur. On the contrary, cable still presents
an attractive option to heavy TV users, and it’ll be years before cable or broadband TV infrastructures
reach rural areas served predominantly by satellite TV.
One thing we can be sure of: the US is watching more TV, on more devices, than ever before.
REFERENCES AND FOOTNOTES

1. https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/report/2013/a-look-across-media-the-cross-platform-
report-q3-2013/ ↩
2. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3078496 ↩
3. https://www.ntia.doc.gov/legacy/otiahome/dtv/index.html ↩
4. < a href="https://www.sandvine.com/press-releases/blog/sandvine-over-70-of-north-american-
tra c-is-now-streaming-video-and-audio">https://www.sandvine.com/pr/2015/12/7/sandvine-over–
70-of-north-american-tra c-is-now-streaming-video-and-audio.html ↩
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WRITTEN BY TYLER COOPER

Tyler Cooper is the Editor-in-chief at BroadbandNow. He has more than
a decade of experience in the telecom industry, and has been writing
about broadband issues such as the digital divide, net neutrality,
cybersecurity and internet access since 2015.
8 COMMENTS, ADD YOURS BELOW.
WEI
October 11, 2016 at 4:15 pm
Does IPTV and OTT providers pick up their content mostly using ber as well? Or
do they use head-ends like the cable companies?
REPLY
PAUL GUZEWICZ
December 29, 2016 at 4:39 pm
I read all the above and still confused on exactly where & how does my Net ix get
on my Sony Bravia TV?
Is it coming from my home network wi- router ala my DSL & computer? Or is it
coming from direct tv’s box?
I get a lot of bu ering at certain times and wonder what set-up I should be on
with my Sony tv?
Thr set- says everything is connected but it still has problems.
Also, will a more powerfull router (54mbits-Mine) help stop the bu ering where
ever it is coming from?
Thank You
I am 77 yrs old and having a lot of senior moments lately.
REPLY
ARUNPRASAD R
March 28, 2017 at 11:16 am
Wow its really helpful and simple understanding ow of comparisons….thanks…
REPLY
MSTEE
June 10, 2017 at 2:19 am
Thanks, a understand a bit more, and hopefully will be able to stop paying a sky
high cable bill and still have quality tv programming.
REPLY
RAKESH MEHROTRA
August 18, 2017 at 3:43 am
Excellent article. One question: is it feasable to provide IPTV on coaxial cable

plant? And if so how it is done?
REPLY
JON TRENT
March 13, 2018 at 4:30 pm
in other words, all the content is OWNED by the cos you are attempting to run or
cut away from. you save money but lose channels and service options. you have
tons of add ons, like when it all started to become convoluted, that take the place
of a/b switches. nd a package you like and get it. in this case, you will GET what
you pay for. nothing comes free.
REPLY
LORRAINE P KESSLER
April 25, 2018 at 1:33 pm
I have a Roku set-top. Always thought this was OTT. Now I am confused. Is it IPTV?
I also am able to stream some channels through my cable provider using their TV
anywhere function. Is the IPTV?? Still trying to understand the distinctions.
REPLY
PINGBACK: HOW DOES A IPTV BOX WORK – AUSTRALIA IPTV
SEBASTIAN
October 3, 2019 at 4:25 am
What a guide. There is no doubt that no one can match the sheer quality of live
streaming but IPTV does have qualities to provide a reliable yet unlimited access
REPLY
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4/17/2020 Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming: What's the Difference?

Cable, Satellite, IPTV & OTT Streaming: What’s the

Image source: Wikimedia Commons

First, some quick de nitions:

THE FOUR FLAVORS OF TELEVISION

Image source: Flickr

Broadcast networks include:

Internet networks include:

PROS AND CONS FOR CONSUMERS

Quality: Dedicated line for high-quality video with no “bu ering.”

Programming: Hundreds of channels, with programs available date of release.

Frequently bundled with broadband cable Internet for a lower price.

Availability: Only available near service providers.

Cost: Generally higher than satellite, IPTV, and OTT streaming.

Convenience: Requires a separate device to record programming for view-on-demand.

Programming: Comparable to cable, available date of release.

Availability: Coverage virtually everywhere in the US.

Convenience: Requires a separate device to record programming for view-on-demand.

Programming: View-on-demand and get shows date of release.

Price: Sold as a subscription at comparable rates to cable TV.

SECTION II: TELEVISION NETWORKS IN DETAIL

FEATURES UNIQUE TO CABLE TV

Satellite TV in relation to other broadcast technologies. Image source: Wikipedia

FEATURES UNIQUE TO SATELLITE TV

Image source: Wikimedia Commons

FEATURES UNIQUE TO OTT STREAMING

speed in cases of network blockage.)

Your enemy: the dreaded bu ering icon. Image source: YouTube

FEATURES UNIQUE TO IPTV

Image source: SmartWorld

REFERENCES AND FOOTNOTES

Internet in Space: Bringing Wi to Earth Orbit, the Moon, and Mars

US States With the Worst and Best Internet Coverage 2018

WRITTEN BY TYLER COOPER

8 COMMENTS, ADD YOURS BELOW.

I am 77 yrs old and having a lot of senior moments lately.

Wow its really helpful and simple understanding ow of comparisons….thanks…

Excellent article. One question: is it feasable to provide IPTV on coaxial cable

MUNICIPAL BROADBAND ROADBLOCKS

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

Spectrum Internet Deals

Centurylink Internet Deals

Cox Internet Deals

Frontier Internet Deals

Viasat Internet Deals

X nity Internet Deals

HughesNet Internet Deals

City Internet Coverage

Chicago Internet Providers

Houston Internet Providers

Dallas Internet Providers

Phoenix Internet Providers

San Antonio Internet Providers

Seattle Internet Providers

San Francisco Internet Providers

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