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Satellite Systems
Communication satellites enable the transfer of media services over long distances more economically than by cable. Signals can be transmitted by satellites to receiving stations for local distribution by cable. Ted Turner's Atlanta-based WTBS became the first U.S. station to use satellite transmission to cable receivers in the 1970s. Turner developed CNN in the 1980s, broadcasting 24-hour news coverage directly to subscribers and selling news to local stations in direct competition with the three main networks. Following its spectacular coverage of the 1991 Gulf War, CNN became a prominent worldwide news provider.
Satellites orbit the earth and transfer data from and to earth stations. Manufacturing and launching satellites is hugely expensive and risky. Satellite launching is a predominantly state-run operation, though at least one commercial satellite-launching ...