| In today's modern times, phone companies no | | | | reception with your analogue cable connection, |
| longer just offer telephony services, and neither | | | | you at least see a broadcast. Digital TV, like digital |
| do the Cable TV providers. These days both can | | | | telephony either has a perfect connection or none |
| offer any combination of Internet Access, | | | | at all. |
| Television and Telephony services. | | | | Internet |
| Like with so many new developments, there are | | | | A cable connection which also provides your |
| benefits and disadvantages to combining the three | | | | internet services, offers fast connections at often |
| mentioned services. Let us have a closer look at | | | | high speeds. The downside is that cable is what |
| the benefits we gain from combining Telephony, | | | | we call a shared medium, while Broadband |
| Internet and Television, but also the drawbacks. | | | | Internet through your phone line (DSL) is a |
| Telephony | | | | dedicated medium. This means that on the same |
| Combining all three services means you will | | | | cable you get your internet connection through, |
| receive them all digitally, instead of the old | | | | every subscriber in your area is also connected, |
| analogue situation, where you received each | | | | and you share the available speed, so at times |
| service separately. For your telephony services | | | | your connection can be very slow, to be lightning |
| this means you will be calling through a system | | | | fast at other times. DSL Internet does not have |
| that is called Voice over IP (VoIP). The immediate | | | | that problem, as the phone line that goes from |
| benefits are cheaper phone calls, because VoIP | | | | your home to the datacenter of the ISP, is yours, |
| telephony basically is Internet telephony, and the | | | | and not shared with anyone else. |
| other immediate benefit is a better quality of | | | | Combining the three |
| telephony as voices will sound crisp and clear. | | | | Combining Internet, television and Telephony, has |
| Digital telephony means no loss of quality in sound | | | | many advantages, like higher Internet speeds, |
| and the signal is also not susceptible to distortions, | | | | better quality of television reception, and cheaper |
| unlike analogue telephony. | | | | phone calls, but besides the disadvantages as |
| On the other hand, with analogue connections, | | | | mentioned above there is two major drawbacks |
| you may have an occasional bad connection, with | | | | that should be taken into serious consideration: |
| terrible sound, making it hard to have a | | | | When the Internet connection fails, so do all other |
| conversation, but you at least have a connection. | | | | services. While with separate services, one can go |
| With digital telephony, you either have a perfect | | | | down, the other keep working, if your internet |
| reception or no connection at all. There is no | | | | connection fails, there is also no more telephony |
| middle way. | | | | and no more TV. |
| Television | | | | When electricity fails the phone fails also. Analogue |
| Digital television, delivers a much clearer signal, | | | | telephony does not require power, and a simple |
| making HD broadcasts possible, and also enables | | | | phone would still work even when the power is |
| other services, like Live Pause functionality and | | | | out. Therefore it is highly recommended that |
| Video on Demand (VoD). The downside is that it | | | | even when you decide to switch over to digital |
| goes through an Internet connection, just like | | | | telephony, to maintain at least one working |
| your digital phone, and like with Analogue | | | | analogue landline, in case of an emergency. |
| telephony, you may have an occasional bad | | | | |