UBC

If you want live sporting events then really it is UBC or nothing. However it is expensive.

If you want some USA TV series (howbeit some a bit on the aged side) & English language news & the odd live sports event, then cable is a good & cheap option if you are in town.

These days the internet is really your friend if you don't actually want to watch something at exactly the same time as it is broadcast in the States & want to pick what you watch when you watch it.
There are huge number of sites that have old US 'series' for free download.
There are a small number of sites that have current series for download the day after they are shown.
The same with most sports events.

Do not forget that DVDs are not an expensive item in Thailand as a way of seeing movies. The quality is variable & you need to find a vendor that you can trust for returns for the just too bad to view & has English language speech or sub titles.

The UBC Gold package (about 1600 per month, but get one month free if you pay one year in advance) seems to be the preferred UBC package. You can see what channels are included at:

http://www.truevisionstv.com/package.aspx?id=38

There are about 20 music channels (american jazz, rock, etc, classical, thai) and about 10 channels that broadcast from Thai classrooms around the country (I use them sometimes for my Thai studies).

UBC is satellite feed, which means your signal will be lost for brief periods during heavy rain.....I estimate I lose about 2 total hours a year.

You can have UBC whether you live in the city or in the middle of the jungle. You'll have to live in the city if you want Udon cable.

For me, I'm stuck on CNN, CNBC, BBC, Natgeo, Discovery, History, and a few of the explore channels (Dog Whisperer). I'm only an occasional movie watcher....and while the pickings aren't the best on HBO and Max, they're sufficient for me. HBO did broadcast the entire Soprano series, along with most of their other popular series. Lots of soccer on sports channels, but only occasional football/baseball (mostly Yankees). You get to see nearly all the headline boxing matches (pay per view back in the US) for free, live........usually broadcast on Sunday mornings Thai time.

In the end, UBC is pricey, but, as I live outside the city, I've yet to find an alternative. I've heard a few folks say 'dreambox' is the way to go, but very few details on the reliability of such a setup.

Here's one way to look at the situation:
For about 2900 baht per month, I get UBC Gold (1600 baht), 6mbps TOT unlimited internet service (590 baht), a landline phone that costs about 300 baht for calls, mobile phone service (about 200 baht per month), and frequent long phone calls to the US (about 200 baht per month, @1 baht per minute whether from our mobile phone or landline, and whether we call a landline or mobile in the US....via CAT phonenet cards). Living in the jungle, I'm a happy camper!