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Satellite TV has been popular for years because it doesn’t need a lot of terrestrial infrastructure, but it’s prone to losing signal during storms. At least one satellite TV provider now has a solution for that: Internet in your home.
DirecTV has launched a new feature available to residential TV subscribers, called “SignalSaver,” which can use your home Internet connection as a backup when satellite TV signal is unavailable. On compatible set-top boxes, when the satellite signal is turned off, the TV can automatically switch to the same channel broadcast over your home Internet connection.
DirecTV / The Verge
Internet TV streaming is neither new nor revolutionary: services like YouTube TV, Hulu TV, and Sling are only available through an Internet connection, but the new DirectTV feature is a useful boost for satellite connections. However, there are some pitfalls. You need a decent home internet connection, and it doesn’t work with all channels. DirecTV said the edge which is only available to 83 national networks, including CNN, ESPN and The Weather Channel. It also won’t automatically switch back to satellite once the signal clears up.
In theory, the new feature should give satellite TV customers the best of both worlds: Your TV won’t generally cut off available bandwidth for your home internet, but it’s still an option if weather conditions don’t cooperate. Hopefully other providers like Dish will implement similar functionality.
Source: The Verge, Next TV
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