During the early years of satellite television, antennas were very large and cost prohibitive. Satellite TV has evolved a great deal in the last 20+ years. Antenna size and monthly programming has continually decreased, increasing the popularity of satellite TV dramatically. Today, more than 25 million US households watch TV programming provided by a satellite antenna.

The path of satellite TV begins at the network affiliates (ABC, CNN, ESPN, etc.). The network affiliates send the programming to an Uplink Center . The Uplink Center receives the programming from all the networks and then compresses the signal before transmitting it to a satellite orbiting ~23,000 miles above the Earth.

The small antenna mounted at the house then receives the signal from the satellite, amplifies it, and sends it to the satellite receiver to be decoded. The satellite receiver decodes the signal and allows it to be displayed on the television.