Since its historic appearance in the entertainment world, satellite TV broadcasting has passed almost twenty years. Satellite or cable TV channels are keeping us busy at our homes. More so, we are getting used to newer wonders in satellite TV world. It is a growing business. From your ?wallet's point of view?, satellite TV broadcasts can be categorized into ?paid? and ?free?. You know what the paid category is (you are probably already paying for it!). But I bet you wonder what is ?free? about it. Do Nfusion, Pansat, SonicView and Viewsat make any sense to you? Well, if it does not, read along the next paragraphs.

Besides the well known paid satellite TV programs, there is something called FTA or free-to-air satellite broadcasts. As the name implies, FTA broadcasts are free to receive without paying any monthly subscription or signing a yearly contract. Many TV stations including the most popular ones transmit free (unencrypted) broadcasts that can be received by a FTA receiver. To avail this free entertainment, you need a FTA receiver and some related accessories. Today, China and South Korea are amongst the top FTA receiver manufacturers. There are many FTA receiver brands and models. Some of them are SonicView, Nfusion, Viewsat, Fortec, Pansat, CaptiveWorks, Coolsat, BlackBird, UltraStar, Ariza, MultiStar, Digiwave, and Twinhan, Of all these brands, SonicView, Nfusion, Viewsat and Pansat receiver models are the ones most wanted.

FTA satellite transmissions typically use MPEG-2 data transmission protocol and FTA receivers are used to receive these codeless, unscrambled transmissions. The receivers look like standard cable TV receivers but quite different in construction.

Why FTA receiver? Answer is simple ? it is free and more importantly there are thousands of FTA channels worldwide. FTA receivers are particularly useful in rural and remote areas where you will not find a cable operator. Furthermore, FTA broadcasts include community or ethnicity based programs designed for special group of people. Religious programs are also aired as FTA transmission.

SonicView is a well known receiver brand. SonicView has a bunch of receiver models namely SonicView 360 Premier, SonicView 360 Elite, SonicView SV8000HD and SonicView SV4000. While standard format receivers are generally priced at $140 to $200, the High Definition (HD) versions cost somewhere around $400 to $420.

Pansat is also a reputed brand. Their receiver models are occupying the market for quite some time. Some top models are Pansat 2700A, Pansat 2800A, Pansat 3500SD, Pansat 6000HXC, Pansat 250SM and Pansat 9200HD. Standard format receivers may cost anywhere from $150 to $200. HD format is generally priced as high as $430.

Nfusion brand is limited to its only model Nfusion Nova with a reasonable price of $200.

The other FTA receiver brand that is most talked about is Viewsat. Their standard format FTA receiver models like Viewsat Lite, Viewsat Ultra, Viewsat Extreme (out of production at this time), and Viewsat Pro have a price range from $130-$190. HD models like Viewsat 9000HD Version 2 will cost you around $420.

Whether it is SonicView, Pansat, Viewsat or Nfusion, prices above may vary a little for stand-alone receivers but may be quite different with package price. Consult webpage/ebay offers and dealers in your area if you want to grab the best offer.