There are many reasons why people surf the web to learn how to watch TV online. Some have already cut/downsized their paid TV subscriptions while others look to add more channels and shows. Either that or like the idea of taking their favorite television programs wherever they go. When searching for answers it's likely that Internet TV software will show up in the search results.
If not that term, Satellite TV Software could show up or some similar term. To explain what these products are and do, first understand there are two types. 1) Free-to-download or freeware; 2) Pay-to-download or shareware.
Both free and pay-to-download applications do the same things basically. They deliver tons of global TV channels, radio stations and videos to computers, and in some cases to mobile devices. The software is really a TV player pre-loaded with 1000s of streaming TV content from around the world and comes with some basic features common to all 3rd party players (free or not).
It's important not to get these players confused with 'Standalone' media players such as Windows Media Player, RealPlayer, Quicktime Player and others. The benefits one receives from downloading and installing 'Non-Standalone' software to his/her Windows or Mac computer are as follows:
* Streamlines/organizes delivery of tons of free channels, videos, radio stations and music to computers
* Fast, easy way to create extra TV via PC/Mac desktop with Internet connection
* Creates TV Anywhere system via laptop to watch programs from any location/
* No need to surf the web to find live and on-demand channels to watch
* Can watch everything from one location inside TV player
* Access to many countries with channels in different languages
* Can save channels and other content to favorites and retrieve them quickly
The services behind these products scrape channel feeds from the Internet through open gateways then puts the content in a database that automatically updates the user's player. The entire process is completed through technology and automation.
Trying to do this manually on your own will result in finding some of the free content but not a large portion of it. Without question, many channels and TV programs can be hard to find online. This has cause many searchers to visit related forums and ask others how to find the TV channel/show they want to watch. The other issue is the do-it-yourself searcher will never experience the best of web TV has to offer when doing things manually.
Internet TV Software - What to Do and Not Do
When targeting these products, the first thing to do is decide on using a free or paid-to-download PC TV software or Mac. Then again, choosing both isn't a bad idea. It's always best to stick with the most popular brands available. Some people visit cnet.com that have different brands of Internet TV software or Satellite TV software to download free of charge. What's also great about this site is there are usually customer reviews to help decide whether to download a particular brand or not.
No matter what website is visited to download these products one should make sure his/her computer is security protected. Some sites may cause a computer to get a virus, adware, or malware. Security software like Kaspersky can help safeguard ones computer and will even send an alert if a website appears risky. Also, it may be better to use Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser that will alert the searcher before the website appears on screen if something is wrong with the site.
In most cases, freebies don't offer a service package or good enough package simply because it's free which brings us to the pay-to-download software. These products come with a service package that includes a lifetime membership consisting of free on-going tech support including automated software upgrades and channel updates. It's also advisable to locate the top brands and read products reviews.
Unfortunately, this is a very small niche to research so there's not as many good reviews to make a well-informed decision. The best reviewer is the one who actually downloaded and tested the software. At this point we are referring to pay-to-download TV software which offers more features and benefits than freebies.
One way to tell whether or not the reviewer actually downloaded and tested the product is by his/her words when talking in the first person... I/we tested... I/we found out... I/we like this feature, etc. There are other ways to find out if the reviewer is legit. S/he should have screen-shots of the TV player and/or video demo that shows it in action. The searcher could go further and research the name of the reviewer and name of his/her site to see if there are any scam reports or disgruntled visitors in the pass.
Also, it doesn't hurt to contact the reviewer with questions. His/Her site should have a way to contact them. If not, stay away; Find another reviewer. A reviewer who shows a picture of him/herself on the site, has an author box and Affiliate Income Disclosure including other legal documents required by law helps ensure the reviewer is legit. If not, don't go any further; Find another reviewer who has all or most of the things mentioned on his/her site.
The reviewer's website will have links and when clicked on refers the visitor to the merchant (official website) where s/he can purchase the TV for PC or Mac software. One important advice one should consider is always contact the service first to ask questions. This will also test their response time which should take no more than 2-3 business days for the service to respond back. See how well they answer questions before making a purchase.
These are some of the do's and don'ts in finding and using software that harnesses the power of the Internet and delivers thousands of free global web television content such as sports, news, TV shows/sitcoms, radio, music, videos and so on. The streamlining affect is the key factor when wanting to set up a web television system via computer or mobile device quickly and easily.
One final note. Free on-demand TV websites like hulu.com and tv.com make a good pair when adding Internet TV software for PC or Mac with a service package.