In America HBO is a premium network, meaning people must pay an additional $15 a month or so to subscribe to it on top of whatever they pay for a hundred-odd "basic" cable channels.

在美国，HBO是付费电视网络，即人们虽然花钱订了100多个“基本”有线频道，还得每月另外支付15美元来订阅它。

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Also, this past year has witnessed the much publicised arrival of a US version of the British TV series Queer as Folk on a major pay TV cable network.

BBC: America's gay TV revolution

So it's not how many people--who wins the weekend, it's how much money a film generates for a studio, not merely from the box office, which is the smallest part--it's only 20 percent of the earnings--but from television sales where it's shown on television--network, pay television, cable--and, of course, DVD and video, foreign sales, toy licensing and even product placement.

NPR: Slate's Hollywood Economics: Bogus Box Office Numbers

Such popularity gave Ledford the confidence to develop a full-time, ad-supported network and to persuade cable companies to pay to carry it.

FORBES: Why Grow Up?