How Long Until Streaming Takes Over The Wired Cable TV?
The internet is becoming a fast-paced entity, full of different users with varying needs accessing at different timesspacesWhy would it be “A La Carte”? Simply, because it hosts a number of options ranging from internet TV, streaming, gaming, 24/7 connection with friendsfamily,this is not where it ends yet… the list simply goes on.
One of the prominent reasons for the hyped “popular culture” is “streaming TV” like YouTube TV or Hulu TV etcwhich is being used across the board by Gen Y from the end of 20th century to Gen Z from the start of the 21st centuryHowever, the unignorable fact is that the widely used method of watching TV still is cable TV without a doubtAccording to the recent stats of 2021, 56 % of Americans still watch cable or satellite TVHowever, the popularity of Cable TV has seen a slow decline in the last 3 years as people have switched to online streaming options like Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, etc, From the younger people in the USA, about 90% prefer the internetchose to cut the cord (cable use).
However, the older population being the Millennials make the largest chunk of the US population according to the 2019 statsThey will continue to be a major part for many more yearswill continue to prefer cable TV for their homesIn the US, several top internet providers have cable services offering 100+ channels at reasonable pricing with great channel lineupsFor example, Spectrum Cable has over 125channelsthe best channel lineup starting from as low as $45The package includes great features like HD TV, play store app, several live streaming channels like with HBO Max™ and many more options to choose from.
The Question Is Which one Is Better?
Here we detail 12 proscons to ease your choice:
| Cable TV | Streaming TV |
| Pros: | |
| Reliable | On-demand/Anytime & Personal choice |
| Live & available all times | Usable on any device with an internet connection |
| Available even when an internet outage occurs | Content options in HD or 4K |
| Comes with hundreds of on-demand options | No Contracts |
| No outages or down-time | Basic streaming is cheaper than cable |
| Content quality in HD depending on the device | Dependent on internet |
| Multiple tierspremium content
Discountscombo with internet/phone service |
Very few packages unless the high-end provider |
| Independent of internet quality | |
| Cons: | |
| Internet outages happen even if not frequent | |
| One year contracts with discountspackages | Not many options/extra payment for the premium or quality content |
| Provider selection limited by the area | Provider selection limited (very limited in the USA) |
| Entry-level tiers are expensive
|
Dependent on internet quality |
Let us cut the chaseunderstand which one is betterThere are varying factors like disposable income, locations,the needs of the family or independent people when considering these optionsIndependent people would rather stream because they don’t spend much time at homefamilies may get the option of cable because there is a continuous need for something to watch on movie nights or for kids’ entertainment.
However, when it comes to the availability of the content, the cable is a norm in the USAThe range of channels go up to a hundred or morewill contain almost all variants of channels, if not all such as niche topic channels like health or fitnessBut this is one reason for paying so much for all the varietyWhile streaming has variety, some channels may not be available for streaming if it is the choice of someone who personally likes certain news of sports channels.
Wrapping Up –Last Verdict
Cable TV brings you premium content based on the packagesdeals a person pays forThese range from low tier to high tier onesThe higher payments have better added benefits, with good quality like HDTV4K high-class content optionsWhile on a per-channel basis, it can cost less since you cannot pickchoose depending on your mood or what “you” want at that exact moment as cable TV does not give that option.
However, the benefits outweigh this slight issue because cable TV has so many options, you can move on to another if you don’t like the one you’re watchingOverall, the streaming TV offers lesser channelsdoes not necessarily serve every taste budHowever, it will likely include the main channels that most viewers will need belonging to the Gen-ZThus, while streaming is a newly popular method to watch TV, nothing beats the cable TV that keeps expanding into new domainschannels, keeping it grwoing with the much-needed change.
