ESL Podcast 307 – Cable and Satellite TV

（单词翻译）

Marion: I’m trying to decide whether to get cable or satellite TV. Which one do you have at your apartment?

Cesar: I have satellite, but I used to have cable.

Marion: What’s the difference?

Cesar: Not a lot. With satellite, you have to have a satellite dish installed on the roof and you don’t with cable. Otherwise, you get similar options. You can get basic channels and choose from a lot of different premium¹ channels. I have a package that includes the basic channels and some premium movie channels, and I also have a sports package so I can watch all of the soccer matches I want.

Marion: How much is the monthly fee?

Cesar: I think I pay $59.99 a month, excluding the taxes and fees, but the basic service is probably cheaper. When I had cable, I had to pay a deposit for the cable box, but with satellite, I had to buy the dish outright², but it wasn’t too expensive.

Marion: What I want are pay-per-view channels, so I don’t need to run to the video rental³ store every time I want to watch a movie.

Cesar: That’s not a problem. There’s video on demand on both cable and satellite, and there are a lot of movies to choose from.

Marion: That’s great. I’ll check out whether my local cable company or satellite service has better packages and make a decision this weekend.

Cesar: You could always start with the basic channels and then add services as you go along.

Marion: That’s a good idea, especially since I know someone who has premium channels and round-the-clock soccer.

Cesar: You bet. Drop by anytime, but don’t forget the beer and popcorn⁴!


Script by Dr. Lucy Tse