Most US citizens who want to enjoy TV satellite programming in their home will find that there are two companies that are the biggest players in this industry. These two satellite TV service providers, DirecTV and DishNetwork, have become so well-known that their company names are synonymous with dish network satellite service. While DishNetwork has long been the leader in the industry, the DirecTV dish service has been staying very competitive.

However, it should be noted that DishNetwork and DirecTV are not the only contenders in this highly competitive field, which is growing and expanding at a rapid pace and is constantly luring customers to dish network satellite services and away from cable companies. One of the other home dish network service providers is the Sky Angel system, which is gaining market share among consumers who want to have a broader selection of family-friendly programming and who do not want much of the mainstream entertainment to be brought into their homes.

Both the DishNetwork and DirecTV dish companies constantly offer specials to consumers, as these two behemoths of the satellite TV industry continue to compete heavily. With all of this competitive spirit, the consumer ends up being the biggest winner in this contest between the satellite television giants.

Many times, both DishNetwork and DirecTV will offer special promotions and the new customers often end up receiving free dish services for a month, free satellite dish equipment, a free dish network satellite receiver, and sometimes even special HDTV programming prices during a trial period. When setting up a new home dish service with these companies there is also the potential to receive special expanded programming packages at a lower price, or one to three months of premium programming channels.

This is wonderful for customers who are just getting familiar with all that satellite TV services have to offer, as they can sample the full programming options during this time without having to pay extra. At the same time, the satellite television companies know that by offering these dish network deals on programming, the consumers often get "hooked" on the additional channels and then are willing to pay for an upgraded programming package or will subscribe to the premium channels.

Even though DishNetwork has been in the lead position in the US for many years, the DirecTV network is gaining ground in the Latin American market. DirecTV is made up of four different operational units, which include the DirecTV Latin America unit, the PanAmSat unit, the Hughes Network Systems unit (known as HNS), in addition to the DirecTV US unit.

The DirecTV dish company has amassed more than 12 million satellite customers throughout the US and they also have about 1.5 million additional customers throughout various Latin American countries. Their PanAmSat network consists of 25 satellites, which have enough transmission capacity to handle 98% of all satellite communications in the world.