World Video Standards Conversion to and from NTSC, SECAM and PAL

We can convert between the two major video standards (NTSC & PAL) and transfer to DVD & VHS.

We can also do standard transfers between most of the Broadcast formats such as:

DigiBeta
DV-CAM
DVC PRO
Betacam SP
or transfer off these formats to MPEG2 files

Click on the map below for country listings for their relevant transmission standard.

INTERNATIONAL TELEVISION BROADCAST STANDARDS

THE STANDARDS generally follow these rules. For a country by county listing click here:

NTSC - 525 lines (all of North and Central America, and Japan)

PAL - 625 lines (most of Europe, Asia, Pacific and Southern Africa)

SECAM - 625 lines (France, C.I.S., Middle East and North Africa)

PAL-M - 525 lines (used in Brazil) FRAME COUNT: NTSC - 30 frames / second - 60Hz PAL - 25 frames / second - 50Hz SECAM - 25 frames / second - 50Hz PALM - 30 frames / second - 60Hz TIME CODE: Whereas with NTSC you have a choice between non-drop and drop frame time code, PAL and SECAM have only one kind of time code. It is similar to non-drop frame as it does not skip any numbers, but like drop frame it runs in real time.

COLOUR: One other major difference between each of the standards is in the way colour information is encoded from its primary Red, Green and Blue (RGB) component.

WHERE ARE THEY USED: NTSC is primarily used in North and Central America, The Philippines, South Korea and Japan. PAL is more widely used, covering most of Western Europe, Scandinavia, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, parts of the Middle East, Algeria, Eastern and Southern Africa. SECAM is used in France, Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union (C.I.S.), Parts of the Middle East, Central and Western Africa.

World television standards tend to reflect the former colonial divisions of the world, so former French colonies in the Middle East and West Africa are SECAM, whereas Eastern and Southern Africa are PAL due to the British and Dutch influence.

Click for a country by country breakdown.

You can contact us in any of the following ways:

Tel: 0191 286 9800

E-mail: T V V Productions Ltd

T V V Productions Ltd, Suite 309, Wingrove House, Ponteland Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE5 3DE