When you are in the market for satellite TV it is easy to get lost and discouraged in the huge sea of programming options and offers. Begin by comparing the different programming packages and channels each company has to offer. The main two companies in the satellite TV industry are Dish Network and Direct TV.

When you go with Dish Network you will be able to upgrade to additional services such as HDTV with the equipment coming free with the subscription upgrade. Dish offers their customers thirty different high definition channels that are totally devoted to HDTV. This is a must have for anyone who has already invested money in to a HDTV and a nice speaker system.

Dish Network also manages to offer a slightly larger channels selection than its major competitor, with more than one hundred and eighty purely digital channels. You can also get access to more than thirty different sports dedicated networks and additional subscriptions such as the NHL Center Ice and the NBA League Pass. Dish Network also offers many foreign language programming in multiple languages, and more than one hundred local channels available. Dish Network is available for anyone in the United States, regardless of where you are.

Dish Network has more than twelve different base packages to offer their customers, with all of their packages including more than one hundred channels. Their entry level package, the America's Top 100 has one hundred of the most popular channels in the United States. If you want more options you can upgrade to the America's Top 200, America's Top 250, and America's Everything Pak which is the biggest package you can get through Dish Network.

Dish Network also offers several additional services and upgrades such as their HDTV channels and equipment, and the digital video recorder. When you subscribe to any one of Dish Network's additional services or channels you will automatically get a free equipment upgrade, making it easier and more affordable than ever to upgrade! With a DVR you are able to digitally record and store up to one hundred hours of your favorite programming directly on to the hard drive of your receiver.

You can also go with Direct TV, which is the nation's number one service provider if you go by the total number of subscribers. Direct TV claims that they offer more channels dollar for dollar than any other service provider in the industry. It is true that Direct TV offers a lower amount of channels than Dish Network but it also offers a few exclusive programming options such as the popular NFL Sunday Ticket, every football fan's must have subscription.

Direct TV manages to stay ahead of the competition by offering their customers special incentives including free receivers, satellite TV dishes, and even programming upgrades. Direct TV offers more than one hundred and fifty channels total, with more than thirty different sports networks. Direct TV also offers foreign language programming in both Spanish and Chinese, and also offers eight high definition TV channels.