By: PDP BLOGMASTER
Just like the VCR, soon the satellite dishes on your house might become obsolete. AT&T, who owns DirecTV, does not plan to buy more satellites and just recently launched their last one. What does this mean for TV? Well it could be going towards a streaming based option. DirecTV NOW is the same as their normal satellite plan, but without the dish. All channels are streamed, like a Netflix show, and the costs are kept lower due to not having to get a dish and the lack of using a satellite.. But this is not the only example of this companies moving away from hardware.
There have been rumors that Xbox plans to have a all-digital console. The “Xbox Maverick” would be a all-digital Xbox One S, which means no disc drive and all games are downloaded to the Xbox. Google also planned a streaming based console called the Google Stadia. This means that games are not downloaded, and instead streamed like Netflix. These changes are showing a shift in media as a digital or streaming based option, and moving away from the old ways of these ideas.
So why is this happening? One reason is that the internet and WiFi has become a standard in houses. Many people use WiFi with their phones, televisions, and other smart devices. Furthermore, it can save costs for companies. Maintaining and buying satellites is not cheap, which is one reason DirecTV could be changing towards a digital model. Xbox has been offering games digitally, and the lack of a disc drive could make the models less expensive to produce which means it is less expensive for customers to buy.
So just as it has happened in the past and will happen in the future, change with technology will occur. People went from having cell phones that flipped open, to those that have touch screens. Evolution and progress is part of the technology industry, and it is what makes it great.