The HD Wars: Cable vs. Satellite

If you watch TV at all, you have to have come across one of the many ads for cable and satellite high-definition (HD) programming. With the cost of HD TVs slowly dropping and more manufactures entering the market, many people are faced with the decision of which HD service provider to use. Is it cable or is it satellite? Living in the Bay Area, the dominant cable provider is Comcast Cable, and Direct TV leads the satellite market. Both have been running TV ads saying that they have more HD programming than the other.

How can both of them claim that they have more HD programming? It would seem that one of them has to be lying. They can't both have more right? It turns out that because of some marketing trickery, both are actually telling the truth.

Because Direct TV utilizes satellite technology, even though I live in the Bay Area, I have access to all of their channels around the country. For instance, we get Fox Sports Net Bay Area, but I could also watch FSN Southwest (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico & Oklahoma) if I wanted to catch a Rockets game. Because of this, Direct TV can not only offer me the HD channels in my area, but can also offer the HD channels across the whole country. That is Direct TV's claim to having more HD channels. There are only a limited number of stations that are available in HD, but Direct TV is able to tap into those stations that offer different programming for different areas of the country (like HBO East & West).

Comcast, on the other hand, does not have that ability. They are currently limited to only the regional programming (I can only get FSN Bay Area). As I said before, there are only a limited number of stations offering HD programming, so how can they claim to have more HD channels than satellite? Well Comcast has Channel 1 On Demand that basically lets you select from a list of "channels" that have movies (and other special programs) on a continuous loop. I use the term "channel" loosely because it's not a real channel like an ABC or TNT, but it does show programming. Those types of channels are what Comcast includes in their claim of having more HD channels.

So who really has more HD programming? Comcast does have more channels that you can go to with HD programming, but Direct TV has more actual HD stations. My vote would be for Direct TV since all of their channels are legitimate. However, if you are a big movie buff, then the Comcast service might be a better deal for you. In the end, I think pricing and other additional options (like high-speed internet) will be the determining factor in which service people will choose.


Many thanks to Sol for his insights on this issue.


CORRECTION: It turns out that I would have to have NBA League Pass in order to get Rockets games in the Bay Area. Even though I can watch FSN Southwest using Direct TV, the Rockets game broadcasts would be blocked out. Thanks to Tijani for pointing out that oversight.