2 n1SC named for Lhe naLlonal 1elevlslon SysLem CommlLLee1 ls Lhe analog Lelevlslon sysLem

LhaL ls used ln mosL of norLh Amerlca mosL of SouLh Amerlca (excepL 8razll ArgenLlna uruguay and
lrench Culana) 8urma SouLh korea 1alwan !apan Lhe hlllpplnes and some aclflc lsland naLlons and
LerrlLorles (see map)
MosL counLrles uslng Lhe n1SC sLandard as well as Lhose uslng oLher analog Lelevlslon sLandards are
swlLchlng Lo newer dlglLal Lelevlslon sLandards of whlch aL leasL four dlfferenL ones are ln use around
Lhe world norLh Amerlca parLs of CenLral Amerlca and SouLh korea are adopLlng Lhe A1SC sLandards
whlle oLher counLrles are adopLlng or have adopLed oLher sLandards
1he flrsL n1SC sLandard was developed ln 1941 and had no provlslon for color Lelevlslon ln 1933 a
second modlfled verslon of Lhe n1SC sLandard was adopLed whlch allowed color Lelevlslon broadcasLlng
compaLlble wlLh Lhe exlsLlng sLock of blackandwhlLe recelvers n1SC was Lhe flrsL wldely adopLed
broadcasL color sysLem AfLer nearly 70 years of use Lhe vasL ma[orlLy of overLhealr n1SC
Lransmlsslons ln Lhe unlLed SLaLes were replaced wlLh dlglLal A1SC on !une 12 2009 and AugusL 31
2011 ln Canada and mosL oLher n1SC markeLsclLaLlon needed uesplLe Lhe shlfL Lo dlglLal broadcasLlng
sLandard deflnlLlon Lelevlslon ln Lhese counLrles conLlnues Lo follow Lhe n1SC sLandard ln Lerms of frame
raLe and number of llnes of resoluLlon ln Lhe unlLed SLaLes a small number of shorLrange local and 1v
relay sLaLlons conLlnue Lo broadcasL n1SC as Lhe lCC allows n1SC baseband vldeo slgnals are also sLlll
ofLen used ln vldeo playback (Lyplcally of recordlngs from exlsLlng llbrarles uslng exlsLlng equlpmenL)
and ln CC1v and survelllance vldeo sysLems

PlsLory

See also PlsLory of Lelevlslon
1he naLlonal 1elevlslon SysLem CommlLLee was esLabllshed ln 1940 by Lhe unlLed SLaLes lederal
CommunlcaLlons Commlsslon (lCC) Lo resolve Lhe confllcLs LhaL arose beLween companles over Lhe
lnLroducLlon of a naLlonwlde analog Lelevlslon sysLem ln Lhe unlLed SLaLes ln March 1941 Lhe
commlLLee lssued a Lechnlcal sLandard for blackandwhlLe Lelevlslon LhaL bullL upon a 1936
recommendaLlon made by Lhe 8adlo ManufacLurers AssoclaLlon (8MA) 1echnlcal advancemenLs of Lhe
vesLlglal sldeband Lechnlque allowed for Lhe opporLunlLy Lo lncrease Lhe lmage resoluLlon 1he n1SC
selecLed 323 scan llnes as a compromlse beLween 8CAs 441scan llne sLandard (already belng used by
8CAs n8C 1v neLwork) and hllcos and uuMonLs deslre Lo lncrease Lhe number of scan llnes Lo
beLween 603 and 800 1he sLandard recommended a frame raLe of 30 frames (lmages) per second
conslsLlng of Lwo lnLerlaced flelds per frame aL 2623 llnes per fleld and 60 flelds per second CLher
sLandards ln Lhe flnal recommendaLlon were an aspecL raLlo of 43 and frequency modulaLlon (lM) for
Lhe sound slgnal (whlch was qulLe new aL Lhe Llme)
ln !anuary 1930 Lhe CommlLLee was reconsLlLuLed Lo sLandardlze color Lelevlslon ln uecember 1933 lL
unanlmously approved whaL ls now called Lhe n1SC color Lelevlslon sLandard (laLer deflned as 8S170a)
1he compaLlble color sLandard reLalned full backward compaLlblllLy wlLh exlsLlng blackandwhlLe
Lelevlslon seLs Color lnformaLlon was added Lo Lhe blackandwhlLe lmage by addlng a color subcarrler
of 43 433/372 313/88 MPz (approxlmaLely 338 MPz) Lo Lhe vldeo slgnal 1o reduce Lhe vlslblllLy of
lnLerference beLween Lhe chromlnance slgnal and lM sound carrler requlred a sllghL reducLlon of Lhe
frame raLe from 30 frames per second Lo 30/1001 (approxlmaLely 2997) frames per second and
changlng Lhe llne frequency from 13730 Pz Lo 13730/1001 Pz (approxlmaLely 1373426 Pz)
1he lCC had brlefly approved a dlfferenL color Lelevlslon sLandard sLarLlng ln CcLober 1930 whlch was
developed by C8S2 Powever Lhls sLandard was lncompaLlble wlLh blackandwhlLe broadcasLs lL used
a roLaLlng color wheel reduced Lhe number of scan llnes from 323 Lo 403 and lncreased Lhe fleld raLe
from 60 Lo 144 buL had an effecLlve frame raLe of only 24 frames per second Legal acLlon by rlval 8CA
kepL commerclal use of Lhe sysLem off Lhe alr unLll !une 1931 and regular broadcasLs only lasLed a few
monLhs before manufacLure of all color Lelevlslon seLs was banned by Lhe Cfflce of uefense MoblllzaLlon
(CuM) ln CcLober osLenslbly due Lo Lhe korean War3 C8S resclnded lLs sysLem ln March 19334 and
Lhe lCC replaced lL on uecember 17 1933 wlLh Lhe n1SC color sLandard whlch was cooperaLlvely
developed by several companles lncludlng 8CA and hllco3 1he flrsL publlcly announced neLwork
Lelevlslon broadcasL of a program uslng Lhe n1SC compaLlble color sysLem was an eplsode of n8Cs
kukla lran and Cllle on AugusL 30 1933 alLhough lL was vlewable ln color only aL Lhe neLworks
headquarLers6 1he flrsL naLlonwlde vlew of n1SC color came on Lhe followlng !anuary 1 wlLh Lhe
coasLLocoasL broadcasL of Lhe 1ournamenL of 8oses arade vlewable on proLoLype color recelvers aL
speclal presenLaLlons across Lhe counLry
1he flrsL color n1SC Lelevlslon camera was Lhe 8CA 1k40 used for experlmenLal broadcasLs ln 1933 an
lmproved verslon Lhe 1k40A lnLroduced ln March 1934 was Lhe flrsL commerclally avallable color
Lelevlslon camera LaLer LhaL year Lhe lmproved 1k41 became Lhe sLandard camera used LhroughouL
much of Lhe 1960s
1he n1SC sLandard has been adopLed by oLher counLrles lncludlng mosL of Lhe Amerlcas and !apan
WlLh Lhe advenL of dlglLal Lelevlslon analog broadcasLs are belng phased ouL MosL uS n1SC
broadcasLers were requlred by Lhe lCC Lo shuL down Lhelr analog LransmlLLers ln 2009 Lowpower
sLaLlons Class A sLaLlons and LranslaLors were noL lmmedlaLely affecLed An analog cuLoff daLe for
Lhose sLaLlons was noL seL
edlL1echnlcal deLalls

edlLLlnes and refresh raLe
n1SC color encodlng ls used wlLh Lhe sysLem M Lelevlslon slgnal whlch conslsLs of 2997 lnLerlaced
frames of vldeo per second or Lhe nearly ldenLlcal sysLem ! ln !apan Lach frame conslsLs of a LoLal of
323 scanllnes of whlch 486 make up Lhe vlslble rasLer 1he remalnder (Lhe verLlcal blanklng lnLerval) are
used for synchronlzaLlon and verLlcal reLrace 1hls blanklng lnLerval was orlglnally deslgned Lo slmply
blank Lhe recelvers C81 Lo allow for Lhe slmple analog clrculLs and slow verLlcal reLrace of early 1v
recelvers Powever some of Lhese llnes now can conLaln oLher daLa such as closed capLlonlng and
verLlcal lnLerval Llmecode (vl1C) ln Lhe compleLe rasLer (lgnorlng halfllnes) Lhe evennumbered or
lower scanllnes (Lvery oLher llne LhaL would be even lf counLed ln Lhe vldeo slgnal eg 246324)
are drawn ln Lhe flrsL fleld and Lhe oddnumbered or upper (Lvery oLher llne LhaL would be odd lf
counLed ln Lhe vldeo slgnal eg 133323) are drawn ln Lhe second fleld Lo yleld a fllckerfree lmage
aL Lhe fleld refresh frequency of approxlmaLely 3994 PerLz (acLually 60 Pz/1001) lor comparlson 376l
sysLems such as AL8/C and SLCAM uses 623 llnes (376 vlslble) and so have a hlgher verLlcal
resoluLlon buL a lower Lemporal resoluLlon of 23 frames or 30 flelds per second
1he n1SC fleld refresh frequency ln Lhe blackandwhlLe sysLem orlglnally exacLly maLched Lhe nomlnal
60 Pz frequency of alLernaLlng currenL power used ln Lhe unlLed SLaLes MaLchlng Lhe fleld refresh raLe
Lo Lhe power source avolded lnLermodulaLlon (also called beaLlng) whlch produces rolllng bars on Lhe
screen When color was laLer added Lo Lhe sysLem Lhe refresh frequency was shlfLed sllghLly downward
Lo 3994 Pz Lo ellmlnaLe sLaLlonary doL paLLerns ln Lhe dlfference frequency beLween Lhe sound and
color carrlers as explalned below ln Color encodlng SynchronlzaLlon of Lhe refresh raLe Lo Lhe power
lncldenLally helped klnescope cameras record early llve Lelevlslon broadcasLs as lL was very slmple Lo
synchronlze a fllm camera Lo capLure one frame of vldeo on each fllm frame by uslng Lhe alLernaLlng
currenL frequency Lo seL Lhe speed of Lhe synchronous AC moLordrlve camera 8y Lhe Llme Lhe frame
raLe changed Lo 2997 Pz for color lL was nearly as easy Lo Lrlgger Lhe camera shuLLer from Lhe vldeo
slgnal lLself
1he acLual flgure of 323 llnes was chosen as a consequence of Lhe llmlLaLlons of Lhe vacuumLubebased
Lechnologles of Lhe day ln early 1v sysLems a masLer volLageconLrolled osclllaLor was run aL Lwlce Lhe
horlzonLal llne frequency and Lhls frequency was dlvlded down by Lhe number of llnes used (ln Lhls case
323) Lo glve Lhe fleld frequency (60 Pz ln Lhls case) 1hls frequency was Lhen compared wlLh Lhe 60 Pz
powerllne frequency and any dlscrepancy correcLed by ad[usLlng Lhe frequency of Lhe masLer osclllaLor
lor lnLerlaced scannlng an odd number of llnes per frame was requlred ln order Lo make Lhe verLlcal
reLrace dlsLance ldenLlcal for Lhe odd and even flelds whlch meanL Lhe masLer osclllaLor frequency had
Lo be dlvlded down by an odd number AL Lhe Llme Lhe only pracLlcal meLhod of frequency dlvlslon was
Lhe use of a chaln of vacuum Lube mulLlvlbraLors Lhe overall dlvlslon raLlo belng Lhe maLhemaLlcal
producL of Lhe dlvlslon raLlos of Lhe chaln Slnce all Lhe facLors of an odd number also have Lo be odd
numbers lL follows LhaL all Lhe dlvlders ln Lhe chaln also had Lo dlvlde by odd numbers and Lhese had Lo
be relaLlvely small due Lhe problems of Lhermal drlfL wlLh vacuum Lube devlces 1he closesL pracLlcal
sequence Lo 300 LhaL meeLs Lhese crlLerla was 3 3 3 7 323 (lor Lhe same reason 623llne AL
8/C and SLCAM uses 3 3 3 3 Lhe old 8rlLlsh 403llne sysLem used 3 3 3 3 3 Lhe lrench 819
llne sysLem used 3 3 7 13 eLc)
edlLColorlmeLry
1he orlglnal 1933 color n1SC speclflcaLlon sLlll parL of Lhe unlLed SLaLes Code of lederal 8egulaLlons
deflned Lhe colorlmeLrlc values of Lhe sysLem as follows7
Crlglnal n1SC colorlmeLry (1933) ClL 1931 x ClL 1931 y
prlmary red 067 033
prlmary green 021 071
prlmary blue 014 008
whlLe polnL (ClL SLandard lllumlnanL C) 0310 0316
Larly color Lelevlslon recelvers such as Lhe 8CA C1100 were falLhful Lo Lhls speclflcaLlon havlng a
larger gamuL Lhan mosL of Lodays monlLors 1helr lowefflclency phosphors however were dark and
longperslsLenL leavlng Lralls afLer movlng ob[ecLs SLarLlng ln Lhe laLe 1930s plcLure Lube phosphors
would sacrlflce saLuraLlon for lncreased brlghLness Lhls devlaLlon from Lhe sLandard boLh aL Lhe recelver
and broadcasLer ends was Lhe source of conslderable color varlaLlon8
edlLColor correcLlon ln sLudlo monlLors and home recelvers
1o ensure more unlform color reproducLlon recelvers sLarLed Lo lncorporaLe color correcLlon clrculLs
LhaL converLed Lhe recelved slgnal encoded for Lhe colorlmeLrlc values llsLed above lnLo slgnals
encoded for Lhe phosphors acLually used wlLhln Lhe recelver8 Slnce such color correcLlon can noL be
performed accuraLely on Lhe nonllnear (gammacorrecLed) slgnals LransmlLLed Lhe ad[usLmenL can only
be approxlmaLed9 lnLroduclng boLh hue and lumlnance errors for hlghly saLuraLed colors
Slmllarly aL Lhe broadcasLer sLage ln 196869 Lhe Conrac Corp worklng wlLh 8CA deflned a seL of
conLrolled phosphors for use ln broadcasL color plcLure vldeo monlLors8 1hls speclflcaLlon survlves
Loday as Lhe SM1L C phosphor speclflcaLlon
SM1L C colorlmeLry ClL 1931 x ClL 1931 y
prlmary red 0630 0340
prlmary green 0310 0393
prlmary blue 0133 0070
whlLe polnL (ClL lllumlnanL u63) 03127 03290
As wlLh home recelvers lL was furLher recommended10 LhaL sLudlo monlLors lncorporaLe slmllar color
correcLlon clrculLs so LhaL broadcasLers would LransmlL plcLures encoded for Lhe orlglnal 1933
colorlmeLrlc values ln accordance wlLh lCC sLandards
ln 1987 Lhe SocleLy of MoLlon lcLure and 1elevlslon Lnglneers (SM1L) CommlLLee on 1elevlslon
1echnology Worklng Croup on SLudlo MonlLor ColorlmeLry adopLed Lhe SM1L C (Conrac) phosphors
for general use ln 8ecommended racLlce 14311 prompLlng many manufacLurers Lo modlfy Lhelr
camera deslgns Lo dlrecLly encode for SM1L C colorlmeLry wlLhouL color correcLlon12 as approved
ln SM1L sLandard 170M ComposlLe Analog vldeo Slgnal n1SC for SLudlo AppllcaLlons (1994) As a
consequence Lhe A1SC dlglLal Lelevlslon sLandard sLaLes LhaL for 480l slgnals SM1L C colorlmeLry
should be assumed unless colorlmeLrlc daLa ls lncluded ln Lhe LransporL sLream13
edlLvarlaLlons
!apanese n1SC uses Lhe same colorlmeLrlc values for red blue and green buL employs a dlfferenL whlLe
polnL of ClL lllumlnanL u93 (x0283 y0293)10 8oLh Lhe AL and SLCAM sysLems used Lhe orlglnal
1933 n1SC colorlmeLry as well unLll 197010 unllke n1SC however Lhe Luropean 8roadcasLlng unlon
(L8u) eschewed color correcLlon ln recelvers and sLudlo monlLors LhaL year and lnsLead expllclLly called
for all equlpmenL Lo dlrecLly encode slgnals for Lhe L8u colorlmeLrlc values14 furLher lmprovlng Lhe
color fldellLy of Lhose sysLems
edlLColor encodlng
lor backward compaLlblllLy wlLh blackandwhlLe Lelevlslon n1SC uses a lumlnancechromlnance
encodlng sysLem lnvenLed ln 1938 by Ceorges valensl Lumlnance (derlved maLhemaLlcally from Lhe
composlLe color slgnal) Lakes Lhe place of Lhe orlglnal monochrome slgnal Chromlnance carrles color
lnformaLlon 1hls allows blackandwhlLe recelvers Lo dlsplay n1SC slgnals slmply by fllLerlng ouL Lhe
chromlnance lf lL were noL removed Lhe plcLure would be covered wlLh doLs (a resulL of chroma belng
lnLerpreLed as lumlnance) All blackandwhlLe 1vs sold ln Lhe uS afLer Lhe lnLroducLlon of color
broadcasLlng ln 1933 were deslgned Lo fllLer chroma ouL buL Lhe early 8W seLs dld noL do Lhls and
chroma doLs would show up ln Lhe plcLureclLaLlon needed
ln n1SC chromlnance ls encoded uslng Lwo 3379343 MPz slgnals LhaL are 90 degrees ouL of phase
known as l (lnphase) and C (quadraLure) CAM 1hese Lwo slgnals are each ampllLude modulaLed and
Lhen added LogeLher 1he carrler ls suppressed MaLhemaLlcally Lhe resulL can be vlewed as a slngle slne
wave wlLh varylng phase relaLlve Lo a reference and varylng ampllLude 1he phase represenLs Lhe
lnsLanLaneous color hue capLured by a 1v camera and Lhe ampllLude represenLs Lhe lnsLanLaneous
color saLuraLlon
lor a 1v Lo recover hue lnformaLlon from Lhe l/C phase lL musL have a zero phase reference Lo replace
Lhe suppressed carrler lL also needs a reference for ampllLude Lo recover Lhe saLuraLlon lnformaLlon So
Lhe n1SC slgnal lncludes a shorL sample of Lhls reference slgnal known as Lhe color bursL locaLed on Lhe
back porch of each horlzonLal llne (Lhe Llme beLween Lhe end of Lhe horlzonLal synchronlzaLlon pulse
and Lhe end of Lhe blanklng pulse) 1he color bursL conslsLs of a mlnlmum of elghL cycles of Lhe
unmodulaLed (flxed phase and ampllLude) color subcarrler 1he 1v recelver has a local osclllaLor
whlch lL synchronlzes Lo Lhe color bursLs and Lhen uses as a reference for decodlng Lhe chromlnance 8y
comparlng Lhe reference slgnal derlved from color bursL Lo Lhe chromlnance slgnals ampllLude and
phase aL a parLlcular polnL ln Lhe rasLer scan Lhe devlce deLermlnes whaL chromlnance Lo dlsplay aL LhaL
polnL Comblnlng LhaL wlLh Lhe ampllLude of Lhe lumlnance slgnal Lhe recelver calculaLes whaL color Lo
make Lhe polnL le Lhe polnL aL Lhe lnsLanLaneous poslLlon of Lhe conLlnuously scannlng beam noLe
LhaL analog 1v ls dlscreLe ln Lhe verLlcal dlmenslon (Lhere are dlsLlncL llnes) buL conLlnuous ln Lhe
horlzonLal dlmenslon (every polnL blends lnLo Lhe nexL wlLh no boundarles) hence Lhere are no plxels ln
analog 1v ln C81 Lelevlslons Lhe n1SC slgnal ls Lurned lnLo 8C8 whlch ls Lhen used Lo conLrol Lhe
elecLron guns ulglLal 1v seLs recelvlng analog slgnals lnsLead converL Lhe plcLure lnLo dlscreLe plxels
1hls process of dlscreLlzaLlon necessarlly degrades Lhe plcLure lnformaLlon somewhaL Lhough wlLh small
enough plxels Lhe effecL may be lmpercepLlble ulglLal seLs lnclude all seLs wlLh a maLrlx of dlscreLe
plxels bullL lnLo Lhe dlsplay devlce such as LCu plasma and uL screens buL noL C81s whlch do noL
have flxed plxels 1hls should noL be confused wlLh dlglLal (A1SC) Lelevlslon slgnals whlch are a form of
MLC vldeo buL whlch sLlll have Lo be converLed lnLo a formaL Lhe 1v can use
When a LransmlLLer broadcasLs an n1SC slgnal lL ampllLudemodulaLes a radlofrequency carrler wlLh
Lhe n1SC slgnal [usL descrlbed whlle lL frequencymodulaLes a carrler 43 MPz hlgher wlLh Lhe audlo
slgnal lf nonllnear dlsLorLlon happens Lo Lhe broadcasL slgnal Lhe 3379343 MPz color carrler may beaL
wlLh Lhe sound carrler Lo produce a doL paLLern on Lhe screen 1o make Lhe resulLlng paLLern less
noLlceable deslgners ad[usLed Lhe orlglnal 60 Pz fleld raLe down by a facLor of 1001 (01) Lo
approxlmaLely 3994 flelds per second 1hls ad[usLmenL ensures LhaL Lhe sums and dlfferences of Lhe
sound carrler and Lhe color subcarrler and Lhelr mulLlples (le Lhe lnLermodulaLlon producLs of Lhe Lwo
carrlers) are noL exacL mulLlples of Lhe frame raLe whlch ls Lhe necessary condlLlon for Lhe doLs Lo
remaln sLaLlonary on Lhe screen maklng Lhem mosL noLlceable
1he 3994 raLe ls derlved from Lhe followlng calculaLlons ueslgners chose Lo make Lhe chromlnance
subcarrler frequency an n + 03 mulLlple of Lhe llne frequency Lo mlnlmlze lnLerference beLween Lhe
lumlnance slgnal and Lhe chromlnance slgnal (AnoLher way Lhls ls ofLen sLaLed ls LhaL Lhe color
subcarrler frequency ls an odd mulLlple of half Lhe llne frequency) 1hey Lhen chose Lo make Lhe audlo
subcarrler frequency an lnLeger mulLlple of Lhe llne frequency Lo mlnlmlze vlslble (lnLermodulaLlon)
lnLerference beLween Lhe audlo slgnal and Lhe chromlnance slgnal 1he orlglnal blackandwhlLe
sLandard wlLh lLs 13730 Pz llne frequency and 43 MPz audlo subcarrler does noL meeL Lhese
requlremenLs so deslgners had elLher Lo ralse Lhe audlo subcarrler frequency or lower Lhe llne
frequency 8alslng Lhe audlo subcarrler frequency would prevenL exlsLlng (black and whlLe) recelvers
from properly Lunlng ln Lhe audlo slgnal Lowerlng Lhe llne frequency ls comparaLlvely lnnocuous
because Lhe horlzonLal and verLlcal synchronlzaLlon lnformaLlon ln Lhe n1SC slgnal allows a recelver Lo
LoleraLe a subsLanLlal amounL of varlaLlon ln Lhe llne frequency So Lhe englneers chose Lhe llne
frequency Lo be changed for Lhe color sLandard ln Lhe blackandwhlLe sLandard Lhe raLlo of audlo
subcarrler frequency Lo llne frequency ls 43 MPz / 13730 28371 ln Lhe color sLandard Lhls becomes
rounded Lo Lhe lnLeger 286 whlch means Lhe color sLandards llne raLe ls 43 MPz / 286 approxlmaLely
13734 llnes per second MalnLalnlng Lhe same number of scan llnes per fleld (and frame) Lhe lower llne
raLe musL yleld a lower fleld raLe ulvldlng (4300000 / 286) llnes per second by 2623 llnes per fleld
glves approxlmaLely 3994 flelds per second

1ransmlsslon modulaLlon scheme


SpecLrum of a SysLem M Lelevlslon channel wlLh n1SC color
An n1SC Lelevlslon channel as LransmlLLed occuples a LoLal bandwldLh of 6 MPz 1he acLual vldeo slgnal
whlch ls ampllLudemodulaLed ls LransmlLLed beLween 300 kPz and 343 MPz above Lhe lower bound of
Lhe channel 1he vldeo carrler ls 123 MPz above Lhe lower bound of Lhe channel Llke mosL AM slgnals
Lhe vldeo carrler generaLes Lwo sldebands one above Lhe carrler and one below 1he sldebands are
each 42 MPz wlde 1he enLlre upper sldeband ls LransmlLLed buL only 123 MPz of Lhe lower sldeband
known as a vesLlglal sldeband ls LransmlLLed 1he color subcarrler as noLed above ls 3379343 MPz
above Lhe vldeo carrler and ls quadraLureampllLudemodulaLed wlLh a suppressed carrler 1he audlo
slgnal ls frequencymodulaLed llke Lhe audlo slgnals broadcasL by lM radlo sLaLlons ln Lhe 88108 MPz
band buL wlLh a 23kPz maxlmum frequency swlng as opposed Lo 73kPz as ls used on Lhe lM band
1he maln audlo carrler ls 43 MPz above Lhe vldeo carrler maklng lL 230 kPz below Lhe Lop of Lhe
channel SomeLlmes a channel may conLaln an M1S slgnal whlch offers more Lhan one audlo slgnal by
addlng one or Lwo subcarrlers on Lhe audlo slgnal each synchronlzed Lo a mulLlple of Lhe llne frequency
1hls ls normally Lhe case when sLereo audlo and/or second audlo program slgnals are used 1he same
exLenslons are used ln A1SC where Lhe A1SC dlglLal carrler ls broadcasL aL 131 MPz above Lhe lower
bound of Lhe channel
1he Cvbs (ComposlLe verLlcal blanklng slgnal) (someLlmes called seLup) ls a volLage offseL beLween Lhe
black and blanklng levels Cvbs ls unlque Lo n1SC Cvbs has Lhe advanLage of maklng n1SC vldeo
more easlly separaLed from lLs prlmary sync slgnals
edlLlrameraLe converslon
See also 1eleclne
1here ls a large dlfference ln frameraLe beLween fllm whlch runs aL approxlmaLely 240 frames per
second and Lhe n1SC sLandard whlch runs aL approxlmaLely 2997 frames per second
unllke Lhe 376l vldeo formaLs Lhls dlfference cannoL be overcome by a slmple speedup
A complex process called 32 pulldown ls used Cne fllm frame ls LransmlLLed for Lhree vldeo flelds (1Z
vldeo frame Llmes) and Lhe nexL frame ls LransmlLLed for Lwo vldeo flelds (one vldeo frame Llme) 1wo
fllm frames are Lherefore LransmlLLed ln flve vldeo flelds for an average of 2Z vldeo flelds per fllm
frame 1he average frame raLe ls Lhus 60 / 23 24 frame/s so Lhe average fllm speed ls exacLly whaL lL
should be 1here are drawbacks however SLlllframlng on playback can dlsplay a vldeo frame wlLh flelds
from Lwo dlfferenL fllm frames so any moLlon beLween Lhe frames wlll appear as a rapld backandforLh
fllcker 1here can also be noLlceable [lLLer/sLuLLer durlng slow camera pans (Leleclne [udder)
1o avold 32 pulldown fllm shoL speclflcally for n1SC Lelevlslon ls ofLen Laken aL 30 frame/sclLaLlon
needed
lor vlewlng naLlve 376l maLerlal (such as Luropean Lelevlslon serles and some Luropean movles) on
n1SC equlpmenL a sLandards converslon has Lo Lake place 1here are baslcally Lwo ways Lo accompllsh
Lhls
1he frameraLe can be slowed from 23 Lo 23976 frames per second (a slowdown of abouL 4) Lo
subsequenLly apply 32 pulldown
lnLerpolaLlon of Lhe conLenLs of ad[acenL frames ln order Lo produce new lnLermedlaLe frames unless
hlghly sophlsLlcaLed moLlonsenslng compuLer algorlLhms are applled Lhls lnLroduces arLlfacLs and even
Lhe mosL modesLly Lralned of eyes can qulckly spoL vldeo LhaL has been converLed beLween formaLs
edlLModulaLlon for analog saLelllLe Lransmlsslon
8ecause saLelllLe power ls severely llmlLed analog vldeo Lransmlsslon Lhrough saLelllLes dlffers from
LerresLrlal 1v Lransmlsslon AM ls a llnear modulaLlon meLhod so a glven demodulaLed slgnalLonolse
raLlo (Sn8) requlres an equally hlgh recelved 8l Sn8 1he Sn8 of sLudlo quallLy vldeo ls over 30 d8 so
AM would requlre prohlblLlvely hlgh powers and/or large anLennas
Wldeband lM ls used lnsLead Lo Lrade 8l bandwldLh for reduced power lncreaslng Lhe channel
bandwldLh from 6 Lo 36 MPz allows a 8l Sn8 of only 10 d8 or less 1he wlder nolse bandwldLh reduces
Lhls 40 d8 power savlng by 36 MPz / 6 MPz 8 d8 for a subsLanLlal neL reducLlon of 32 d8
Sound ls on a lM subcarrler as ln LerresLrlal Lransmlsslon buL frequencles above 43 MPz are used Lo
reduce aural/vlsual lnLerference 68 38 and 62 MPz are commonly used SLereo can be mulLlplex or
dlscreLe and unrelaLed audlo and daLa slgnals may be placed on addlLlonal subcarrlers
A Lrlangular 60 Pz energy dlspersal waveform ls added Lo Lhe composlLe baseband slgnal (vldeo plus
audlo and daLa subcarrlers) before modulaLlon 1hls llmlLs Lhe saLelllLe downllnk power specLral denslLy
ln case Lhe vldeo slgnal ls losL CLherwlse Lhe saLelllLe mlghL LransmlL all of lLs power on a slngle
frequency lnLerferlng wlLh LerresLrlal mlcrowave llnks ln Lhe same frequency band
ln half Lransponder mode Lhe frequency devlaLlon of Lhe composlLe baseband slgnal ls reduced Lo 18
MPz Lo allow anoLher slgnal ln Lhe oLher half of Lhe 36 MPz Lransponder 1hls reduces Lhe lM beneflL
somewhaL and Lhe recovered Sn8s are furLher reduced because Lhe comblned slgnal power musL be
backed off Lo avold lnLermodulaLlon dlsLorLlon ln Lhe saLelllLe Lransponder A slngle lM slgnal ls
consLanL ampllLude so lL can saLuraLe a Lransponder wlLhouL dlsLorLlon
edlLlleld order
13 An n1SC frame conslsLs of an even fleld followed by an odd fleld As far as Lhe recepLlon of an
analog slgnal ls concerned Lhls ls purely a maLLer of convenLlon and lL makes no dlfference lLs raLher
llke Lhe broken llnes runnlng down Lhe mlddle of a road lL doesnL maLLer wheLher lL ls a llne/space palr
or a space/llne palr Lhe effecL Lo a drlver ls exacLly Lhe same
1he lnLroducLlon of dlglLal Lelevlslon formaLs has changed Lhlngs somewhaL MosL dlglLal 1v formaLs
lncludlng Lhe popular uvu formaL record n1SC orlglnaLed vldeo wlLh Lhe even fleld flrsL ln Lhe recorded
frame (Lhe developmenL of uvu Look place ln reglons LhaL LradlLlonally uLlllze n1SC) Powever Lhls
frame sequence has mlgraLed Lhrough Lo Lhe socalled AL formaL (acLually a Lechnlcally lncorrecL
descrlpLlon) of dlglLal vldeo wlLh Lhe resulL LhaL Lhe even fleld ls ofLen recorded flrsL ln Lhe frame (Lhe
Luropean 623 llne sysLem ls speclfled as odd frame flrsL) 1hls ls no longer a maLLer of convenLlon
because a frame of dlglLal vldeo ls a dlsLlncL enLlLy on Lhe recorded medlum 1hls means LhaL when
reproduclng many non n1SC based dlglLal formaLs (lncludlng uvu) lL ls necessary Lo reverse Lhe fleld
order oLherwlse an unaccepLable shudderlng comb effecL occurs on movlng ob[ecLs as Lhey are shown
ahead ln one fleld and Lhen [ump back ln Lhe nexL
1hls has also become a hazard where non n1SC progresslve vldeo ls Lranscoded Lo lnLerlaced and vlce
versa SysLems LhaL recover progresslve frames or Lranscode vldeo should ensure LhaL Lhe lleld Crder
ls obeyed oLherwlse Lhe recovered frame wlll conslsL of a fleld from one frame and a fleld from an
ad[acenL frame resulLlng ln comb lnLerlaclng arLlfacLs 1hls can ofLen be observed ln C based vldeo
playlng uLlllLles lf an lnapproprlaLe cholce of delnLerlaclng algorlLhm ls made
edlLComparaLlve quallLy



1he SM1L color bars an example of a LesL card
8ecepLlon problems can degrade an n1SC plcLure by changlng Lhe phase of Lhe color slgnal (acLually
dlfferenLlal phase dlsLorLlon) so Lhe color balance of Lhe plcLure wlll be alLered unless a compensaLlon ls
made ln Lhe recelver 1he vacuumLube elecLronlcs used ln Lelevlslons Lhrough Lhe 1960s led Lo varlous
Lechnlcal problems Among oLher Lhlngs Lhe color bursL phase would ofLen drlfL when channels were
changed whlch ls why n1SC Lelevlslons were equlpped wlLh a LlnL conLrol AL and SLCAM Lelevlslons
had no need of one and alLhough lL ls sLlll found on n1SC 1vs color drlfLlng generally ceased Lo be a
problem once solldsLaLe elecLronlcs were adopLed ln Lhe 1970s When compared Lo AL ln parLlcular
n1SC color accuracy and conslsLency ls someLlmes consldered lnferlor leadlng Lo vldeo professlonals
and Lelevlslon englneers [oklngly referrlng Lo n1SC as never 1he Same Color never 1wlce Lhe Same
Color or no 1rue Skln Colors16 whlle for Lhe more expenslve AL sysLem lL was necessary Lo ay for
AddlLlonal Luxury AL has also been referred Lo as eace AL LasL or erfecLlon AL LasL ln Lhe color war
1hls mosLly applled Lo vacuum Lubebased 1vs however and solld sLaLe seLs have less of a dlfference ln
quallLy beLween n1SC and AL 1hls color phase LlnL or hue conLrol allows for anyone skllled ln Lhe
arL Lo easlly callbraLe a monlLor wlLh SM1L color bars even wlLh a seL LhaL has drlfLed ln lLs color
represenLaLlon allowlng Lhe proper colors Lo be dlsplayed Clder AL Lelevlslon seLs dld noL come wlLh a
user accesslble hue conLrol (lL was seL aL Lhe facLory) whlch conLrlbuLed Lo lLs repuLaLlon for
reproduclble colors
1he use of n1SC coded color ln Svldeo sysLems compleLely ellmlnaLes Lhe phase dlsLorLlons As a
consequence Lhe use of n1SC color encodlng glves Lhe hlghesL resoluLlon plcLure quallLy (on Lhe
horlzonLal axls frame raLe) of Lhe Lhree color sysLems when used wlLh Lhls scheme (1he n1SC
resoluLlon on Lhe verLlcal axls ls lower Lhan Lhe Luropean sLandards 323 llnes agalnsL 623) Powever lL
uses Loo much bandwldLh for overLhealr Lransmlsslon Some home compuLers ln Lhe 1980s generaLed
Svldeo buL only for speclally deslgned monlLors as no 1v aL Lhe Llme supporLed lL ln 1987 a
sLandardlzed 4pln uln plug was lnLroduced for Svldeo lnpuL wlLh Lhe lnLroducLlon of SvPS players
whlch were Lhe flrsL devlce produced Lo use Lhe 4pln plugs Powever SvPS never became very
popular vldeo game consoles ln Lhe 1990s began offerlng Svldeo ouLpuL as well
WlLh Lhe advenL of uvu players ln Lhe 1990s componenL vldeo also began appearlng 1hls provldes
separaLe llnes for Lhe lumlnance red shlfL and blue shlfL 1hus componenL produces near8C8 quallLy
vldeo lL also allows 480p progresslvescan vldeo due Lo Lhe greaLer bandwldLh offered
1he mlsmaLch beLween n1SCs 30 frames per second and fllms 24 frames ls overcome by a process LhaL
caplLallzes on Lhe fleld raLe of Lhe lnLerlaced n1SC slgnal Lhus avoldlng Lhe fllm playback speedup used
for 376l sysLems aL 23 frames per second (whlch causes Lhe accompanylng audlo Lo lncrease ln plLch
sllghLly someLlmes recLlfled wlLh Lhe use of a plLch shlfLer) aL Lhe prlce of some [erklness ln Lhe vldeo
See lrameraLe converslon above
edlLvarlanLs

edlLn1SCM
unllke AL wlLh lLs many varled underlylng broadcasL Lelevlslon sysLems ln use LhroughouL Lhe world
n1SC color encodlng ls lnvarlably used wlLh broadcasL sysLem M glvlng n1SCM
edlLn1SC!
Cnly !apans varlanL n1SC! ls sllghLly dlfferenL ln !apan black level and blanklng level of Lhe slgnal are
ldenLlcal (aL 0 l8L) as Lhey are ln AL whlle ln Amerlcan n1SC black level ls sllghLly hlgher (73 l8L) Lhan
blanklng level Slnce Lhe dlfference ls qulLe small a sllghL Lurn of Lhe brlghLness knob ls all LhaL ls
requlred Lo correcLly show Lhe oLher varlanL of n1SC on any seL as lL ls supposed Lo be mosL waLchers
mlghL noL even noLlce Lhe dlfference ln Lhe flrsL place 1he channel encodlng on n1SC! dlffers sllghLly
from n1SCM ln parLlcular Lhe !apanese vPl band runs from channels 112 whlle Lhe Amerlcan vPl
band uses channels 213
edlLALM (8razll)
1he 8razlllan ALM sysLem lnLroduced ln 1972 uses Lhe same llnes/fleld as n1SC (323/60) and almosL
Lhe same broadcasL bandwldLh and scan frequency (13730 vs 13734 kPz) rlor Lo Lhe lnLroducLlon of
color 8razll broadcasL ln sLandard blackandwhlLe n1SC As a resulL ALM slgnals are near ldenLlcal Lo
norLh Amerlcan n1SC slgnals excepL for Lhe encodlng of Lhe colour subcarrler (3373611 MPz for ALM
and 3379343 MPz for n1SC) As a consequence of Lhese close specs ALM wlll dlsplay ln monochrome
wlLh sound on n1SC seLs and vlce versa
ALM (ALhase AlLernaLlng Llne) specs are
1ransmlsslon 8and uPl/vPl
lrame 8aLe 2997
Llnes/lleld 323/60
PorlzonLal lreq 13730 kPz
verLlcal lreq 60 Pz
Color Sub Carrler 3373611 MPz
vldeo 8andwldLh 42 MPz
Sound Carrler lrequency 43 MPz
Channel 8andwldLh 6 MPz
n1SC (naLlonal 1elevlslon SysLem CommlLLee) specs are
1ransmlsslon 8and uPl/vPl
Llnes/lleld 323/60
PorlzonLal lrequency 13734 kPz
verLlcal lrequency 60 Pz
Color Subcarrler lrequency 3379343 MPz
vldeo 8andwldLh 42 MPz
Sound Carrler lrequency 43 MPz
edlLALn
Maln arLlcle AL#ALn
1hls ls used ln araguay uruguay and ArgenLlna 1hls ls very slmllar Lo ALM (used ln 8razll)
1he slmllarlLles of n1SCM and n1SCn can be seen on Lhe l1u ldenLlflcaLlon scheme Lable whlch ls
reproduced here
World Lelevlslon sysLems
SysLem Llnes lrame raLe Channel b/w vlsual b/w Sound offseL vesLlglal sldeband
vlslon mod Sound mod noLes
M 323 2997 6 42 +43 073 neg lM MosL of Lhe Amerlcas and
Carlbbean SouLh korea 1alwan hlllpplnes (all n1SCM) and 8razll (ALM)
n 623 23 6 42 +43 073 neg lM ArgenLlna araguay uruguay
(all ALn) CreaLer number of llnes resulLs ln hlgher quallLy
As lL ls shown aslde from Lhe number of llnes and frames per second Lhe sysLems are ldenLlcal n1SC
n/ALn are compaLlble wlLh sources such as game consoles vPS/8eLamax vC8s and uvu players
Powever Lhey are noL compaLlble wlLh broadband broadcasLs (whlch are recelved over an anLenna)
Lhough some newer seLs come wlLh baseband n1SC 338 supporL (n1SC 338 belng Lhe frequency for
color modulaLlon ln n1SC 338 MPz)
edlLn1SC 443
ln whaL can be consldered an opposlLe of AL60 n1SC 443 ls a pseudo color sysLem LhaL LransmlLs
n1SC encodlng (323/2997) wlLh a color subcarrler of 443 MPz lnsLead of 338 MPz 1he resulLlng
ouLpuL ls only vlewable by 1vs LhaL supporL Lhe resulLlng pseudosysLem (usually mulLlsLandard 1vs)
uslng a naLlve n1SC 1v Lo decode Lhe slgnal ylelds no color whlle uslng a AL 1v Lo decode Lhe sysLem
ylelds erraLlc colors (observed Lo be lacklng red and fllckerlng randomly) 1he formaL ls apparenLly
llmlLed Lo few early laserdlsc players and some game consoles sold ln markeLs where Lhe AL sysLem ls
used
1he n1SC 443 sysLem whlle noL a broadcasL formaL appears mosL ofLen as a playback funcLlon of AL
casseLLe formaL vC8s beglnnlng wlLh Lhe Sony 3/4 uMaLlc formaL and Lhen followlng onLo 8eLamax
and vPS formaL machlnes As Pollywood has Lhe clalm of provldlng Lhe mosL casseLLe sofLware (movles
and Lelevlslon serles) for vC8s for Lhe worlds vlewers and as noL all casseLLe releases were made
avallable ln AL formaLs a means of playlng n1SC formaL casseLLes was hlghly deslred
MulLlsLandard vldeo monlLors were already ln use ln Lurope Lo accommodaLe broadcasL sources ln AL
SLCAM and n1SC vldeo formaLs 1he heLerodyne colorunder process of uMaLlc 8eLamax vPS lenL
lLself Lo mlnor modlflcaLlon of vC8 players Lo accommodaLe n1SC formaL casseLLes 1he colorunder
formaL of vPS uses a 629 kPz subcarrler whlle uMaLlc 8eLamax use a 688 kPz subcarrler Lo carry an
ampllLude modulaLed chroma slgnal for boLh n1SC and AL formaLs Slnce Lhe vC8 was ready Lo play Lhe
color porLlon of Lhe n1SC recordlng uslng AL color mode Lhe AL scanner and capsLan speeds had Lo
be ad[usLed from ALs 30 Pz fleld raLe Lo n1SCs 3994 Pz fleld raLe and fasLer llnear Lape speed
1he changes Lo Lhe AL vC8 are mlnor Lhanks Lo Lhe exlsLlng vC8 recordlng formaLs 1he ouLpuL of Lhe
vC8 when playlng an n1SC casseLLe ln n1SC 443 mode ls 323 llnes/2997 frames per second wlLh AL
compaLlble heLerodyned color 1he mulLlsLandard recelver ls already seL Lo supporL Lhe n1SC P v
frequencles lL [usL needs Lo do so whlle recelvlng AL color
1he exlsLence of Lhose mulLlsLandard recelvers was probably parL of Lhe drlve for reglon codlng of
uvus As Lhe color slgnals are componenL on dlsc for all dlsplay formaLs almosL no changes would be
requlred for AL uvu players Lo play n1SC (323/2997) dlscs as long as Lhe dlsplay was frameraLe
compaLlble
edlLn1SCmovle
n1SC wlLh a frame raLe of 23976 frame/s ls descrlbed ln Lhe n1SCmovle sLandardclLaLlon needed
1hls secLlon requlres expanslon
edlLCanada/uS vldeo game reglon
SomeLlmes n1SCuS or n1SCu/C ls used Lo descrlbe Lhe vldeo gamlng reglon of norLh Amerlca (Lhe u/C
refers Lo uS + Canada) as reglonal lockouL usually resLrlcLs games released wlLhln a reglon Lo LhaL
reglon
edlLverLlcal lnLerval reference

1he sLandard n1SC vldeo lmage conLalns some llnes (llnes 121 of each fleld) LhaL are noL vlslble (Lhls ls
known as Lhe verLlcal 8lanklng lnLerval or v8l) all are beyond Lhe edge of Lhe vlewable lmage buL only
llnes 19 are used for Lhe verLlcalsync and equallzlng pulses 1he remalnlng llnes were dellberaLely
blanked ln Lhe orlglnal n1SC speclflcaLlon Lo provlde Llme for Lhe elecLron beam ln C81based screens Lo
reLurn Lo Lhe Lop of Lhe dlsplay
vl8 (or verLlcal lnLerval reference) wldely adopLed ln Lhe 1980s aLLempLs Lo correcL some of Lhe color
problems wlLh n1SC vldeo by addlng sLudlolnserLed reference daLa for lumlnance and chromlnance
levels on llne 1917 SulLably equlpped Lelevlslon seLs could Lhen employ Lhese daLa ln order Lo ad[usL
Lhe dlsplay Lo a closer maLch of Lhe orlglnal sLudlo lmage 1he acLual vl8 slgnal conLalns Lhree secLlons
Lhe flrsL havlng 70 percenL lumlnance and Lhe same chromlnance as Lhe color bursL slgnal and Lhe oLher
Lwo havlng 30 percenL and 73 percenL lumlnance respecLlvely18
A lessused successor Lo vl8 CC8 also added ghosL (mulLlpaLh lnLerference) removal capablllLles
1he remalnlng verLlcal blanklng lnLerval llnes are Lyplcally used for daLacasLlng or anclllary daLa such as
vldeo edlLlng LlmesLamps (verLlcal lnLerval Llmecodes or SM1L Llmecodes on llnes 12141920) LesL
daLa on llnes 1718 a neLwork source code on llne 20 and closed capLlonlng xuS and vchlp daLa on
llne 21 Larly LeleLexL appllcaLlons also used verLlcal blanklng lnLerval llnes 1418 and 20 buL LeleLexL
over n1SC was never wldely adopLed by vlewers21
Many sLaLlons LransmlL 1v Culde Cn Screen (1vCCS) daLa for an elecLronlc program gulde on v8l llnes
1he prlmary sLaLlon ln a markeL wlll broadcasL 4 llnes of daLa and backup sLaLlons wlll broadcasL 1 llne
ln mosL markeLs Lhe 8S sLaLlon ls Lhe prlmary hosL 1vCCS daLa can occupy any llne from 1023 buL ln
pracLlce lLs llmlLed Lo 1118 20 and llne 22 Llne 22 ls only used for 2 broadcasL ulrec1v and ClL1v
1lvo daLa ls also LransmlLLed on some commerclals and program adverLlsemenLs so cusLomers can
auLorecord Lhe program belng adverLlsed and ls also used ln weekly halfhour pald programs on lon
1elevlslon and Lhe ulscovery Channel whlch hlghllghL 1lvo promoLlons and adverLlsers
edlLCounLrles and LerrlLorles uslng n1SC

edlLnorLh Amerlca
8ermuda
Canada CverLhealr n1SC broadcasLlng ln ma[or clLles only scheduled Lo be abandoned by AugusL
2011 slmulcasL ln A1SC22
Mexlco CverLhealr n1SC broadcasLlng scheduled Lo be abandoned by uecember 31 2013 slmulcasL ln
A1SC23
unlLed SLaLes Plghpower overLhealr n1SC broadcasLlng was swlLched off on !une 12 20092423 ln
favor of A1SC Lowpower sLaLlons Class A sLaLlons and LranslaLors are noL lmmedlaLely affecLed nor
are remalnlng analog cable Lelevlslon sysLems n1SC also remalns ln use as an lnLerconnecL sLandard for
A/v devlces such as Lelevlslons and uvu players
edlLCenLral Amerlca
8ellze
CosLa 8lca n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 2018 slmulcasLlng lSu81/b
Ll Salvador CverLhealr n1SC broadcasLlng scheduled Lo be abandoned by !anuary 1 2019 slmulcasL ln
A1SC
CuaLemala
Ponduras CverLhealr n1SC broadcasLlng scheduled Lo be abandoned by uecember 2020 slmulcasL ln
A1SC
nlcaragua
anama
edlLCarlbbean lslands
AnLlgua and 8arbuda
Aruba
8ahamas
8arbados
8rlLlsh vlrgln lslands
Carlbbean neLherlands
Cayman lslands
Cuba
Curaao
uomlnlca
uomlnlcan 8epubllc
Crenada
PalLl
!amalca
MonLserraL
uerLo 8lco (uS)
SalnL klLLs and nevls
SalnL Lucla
SalnL vlncenL and Lhe Crenadlnes
SlnL MaarLen
1rlnldad and 1obago
uS vlrgln lslands
edlLSouLh Amerlca
8ollvla
Colombla n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by 2019 slmulcasLlng uv81
Lcuador
Cuyana
Chlle n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 31 2017 slmulcasLlng lSu81/b
eru n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 31 2017 slmulcasLlng lSu81/bclLaLlon needed
Surlname
venezuela

edlLAfrlca

edlLAsla
!apan n1SC! broadcasL was swlLched off on !uly 24 2011 slmulcasLlng lSu81 buL some area wlll be
delayed due Lo 2011 Mlyagl earLhquake
SouLh korea n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 2012 slmulcasL ln A1SC
8epubllc of Chlna (1alwan) n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by !une 30 2012 slmulcasL ln uv81
unlon of 8urma
hlllpplnes n1SC broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 2013 SlmulcasL ln lSu81
CLher
Pong kong (Cnly for few saLelllLe 1v programs mosLly are changed lnLo AL)
norLh korea (ropaganda sLaLlon almed aL SouLh korea domesLlc broadcasLs use AL)
Cambodla (PlsLorlc Cambodla now uses AL)
1halland lormer used shorLly by 1hal 1v Channel 4 8angkunbrohma laLer changed Lo AL ln laLe
1960s
edlLCceanla
edlLuS LerrlLorles
Amerlcan Samoa
Cuam
Pawall
norLhern Marlana lslands
Mldway ALoll (a uS mlllLary base)
edlLChllean LerrlLorles
LasLer lsland n1SCM broadcasL Lo be abandoned by uecember 31 2017 slmulcasLlng lSu81/b
edlLCLher aclflc lsland naLlons
Marshall lslands (ln CompacL of lree AssoclaLlon wlLh uS uS ald funded n1SC adopLlon)
Mlcronesla (ln CompacL of lree AssoclaLlon wlLh uS)
alau (ln CompacL of lree AssoclaLlon wlLh uS adopLed n1SC before lndependence)
Samoa (closely Lled Lo Amerlcan Samoa uS ald funded n1SC adopLlon)
1onga (uS ald funded n1SC adopLlon)
edlLlndlan Ccean
ulego Carcla
edlLLurope
edlLPlsLorlc (used n1SC experlmenLally before adopLlng AL)
unlLed klngdom (LesLs uslng 403llne 30 Pz sysLem ln Lhe laLe 1930s before Lhe lnLroducLlon of AL
Color and 623/30 Pz ln Lhe 1960s)
lreland (Same as above)du

ShorL for naLlonal 1elevlslon SysLem CommlLLee 1he n1SC ls responslble for seLLlng Lelevlslon and vldeo
sLandards ln Lhe unlLed SLaLes (ln Lurope and Lhe resL of Lhe world Lhe domlnanL Lelevlslon sLandards
are AL and SLCAM) 1he n1SC sLandard for Lelevlslon deflnes a composlLe vldeo slgnal wlLh a refresh
raLe of 60 halfframes (lnLerlaced) per second Lach frame conLalns 323 llnes and can conLaln 16 mllllon
dlfferenL colors
1he n1SC sLandard ls lncompaLlble wlLh mosL compuLer vldeo sLandards whlch generally use 8C8 vldeo
slgnals Powever you can lnserL speclal vldeo adapLers lnLo your compuLer LhaL converL n1SC slgnals
lnLo compuLer vldeo slgnals and vlce versa

(1) ShorL for hase AlLernaLlng Llne Lhe domlnanL Lelevlslon sLandard ln Lurope 1he unlLed SLaLes uses
a dlfferenL sLandard n1SC Whereas n1SC dellvers 323 llnes of resoluLlon aL 60 halfframes per second
AL dellvers 623 llnes aL 30 halfframes per second Many vldeo adapLers LhaL enable compuLer
monlLors Lo be used as Lelevlslon screens supporL boLh n1SC and AL slgnals

3 AM SLaLlon Classes
Clear 8eglonal and Local Channels

lnLroducLlon
1here are Lwo flelds ln Lhe AM Lnglneerlng uaLabase and Lhe AM Cuery whlch lnvolve Lhe class of
sLaLlon 1hey are

1he uomesLlc Class (or class of Lhe sLaLlon wlLh respecL Lo oLher uS sLaLlons) whlch ls generally Lhe
class of sLaLlon deflned ln SecLlon 7321
1he 8eglon 2 Class whlch ls generally Lhe class of sLaLlon as deflned ln Lhe 8eglon 2 WesLern
Pemlsphere AM AgreemenL 1hls class also corresponds Lo Lhe class ln Lhe 1984 uSCanadlan AM
AgreemenL and Lhe 1986 uSMexlcan AgreemenL
Classes for uS SLaLlons
ln MM uockeL 87267 Lhe Commlsslon reclasslfled all domesLlc unlLed SLaLes AM sLaLlons 1hese
classes are A 8 C and u Cenerally all uS records wlll have boLh a uomesLlc Class and a 8eglon 2
Class lor uS sLaLlons Lhe 8eglon 2 Class can be derlved from Lhe uomesLlc Class 1herefore we
explaln how Lo derlve Lhe uomesLlc Class flrsL 1he AM band frequencles are dlvlded lnLo Lhree
caLegorles Clear 8eglonal and Local channels 1he allowable classes depend on a sLaLlons frequency
ln addlLlon Lo oLher varlables Cn Lhe Clear channels cerLaln sLaLlons are speclflcally classlfled as Class A
sLaLlons or as Class 8 sLaLlons 1he oLher sLaLlons have Lhelr class deLermlned by Lhe frequency

Classes of AM sLaLlons are deflned as follows

Class A SLaLlon A Class A sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon (LhaL ls lL can broadcasL 24 hours per day)
LhaL operaLes on a clear channel 1he operaLlng power shall noL be less Lhan 10 kllowaLLs (kW) or more
Lhan 30 kW
Class 8 SLaLlon A Class 8 sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon Class 8 sLaLlons are auLhorlzed Lo operaLe
wlLh a mlnlmum power of 0230 kW (230 waLLs) and a maxlmum power of 30 kW (lf a Class 8 sLaLlon
operaLes wlLh less Lhan 0230 kW Lhe 8MS musL be equal Lo or greaLer Lhan 141 mv/m aL 1 km for Lhe
acLual power) lf Lhe sLaLlon ls auLhorlzed Lo operaLe ln Lhe expanded band (1610 Lo 1700 kPz) Lhe
maxlmum power ls 10 kW
Class C SLaLlon A Class C sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon LhaL operaLes on a local channel 1he power
shall noL be less Lhan 023 kW nor more Lhan 1 kW Class C sLaLlons LhaL are llcensed Lo operaLe wlLh
0100 kW may conLlnue Lo operaLe as llcensed

Class u SLaLlon A Class u sLaLlon operaLes elLher dayLlme llmlLed Llme or unllmlLed Llme wlLh a
nlghLLlme power less Lhan 0230 kW and an equlvalenL 8MS anLenna fleld less Lhan 141 mv/m aL 1 km
for Lhe acLual power Class u sLaLlons shall operaLe wlLh dayLlme powers noL less Lhan 0230 kW nor
more Lhan 30 kW nC1L lf a sLaLlon ls an exlsLlng dayLlmeonly sLaLlon lLs class wlll be Class u
Clear 8eglonal and Local Channels
SLeps Lo lollow Lo ueLermlne Lhe uomesLlc Class
lf you donL wanL Lo use Lhe easy way Lo deLermlne Lhe sLaLlons domesLlc class (vla Lhe AM Cuery)
heres Lhe sLeps Lo follow Lo deLermlne Lhe class A Lable of whlch frequencles are Clear 8eglonal or
Local ls lncluded below

ueLermlne whlch frequency Lhe sLaLlon ls on (or ls proposlng) and also deLermlne wheLher Lhe sLaLlon ls
one of Lhe ones wlLh a speclflcally deflned class (see Lhe rlghL column ln Lhe Lable below) lollowlng ls a
llsL by frequency whlch llsLs Lhe speclflc Class A or Class 8 sLaLlons along wlLh Lhe avallable classes for
Lhe oLher sLaLlons
Channel 1ype lrequency
(kPz) Avallable
Classes AsslgnmenL
Cld class deslgnaLlon ln ( )
330 ln Lhe uSA reserved for low power AM 1ravellers lnformaLlon SLaLlons
Clear 340 A8u
8eglonal 330 8u
8eglonal 360 8u
8eglonal 370 8u
8eglonal 380 8u
8eglonal 390 8u
8eglonal 600 8u
8eglonal 610 8u
8eglonal 620 8u
8eglonal 630 8u
Clear 640 A8u kll Los Angeles CA Class A (lA)
k?uk 8eLhel Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 630 A8u WSM nashvllle 1n Class A (lA)
kLn? Anchorage Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 660 A8u WlAn new ?ork n? Class A (lA)
klA8 lalrbanks Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 670 A8u WMAC Chlcago lL Class A (lA)
kuLC ullllngham Ak Class (ln)
k8Cl 8olse ldaho Class 8 (llA)
Clear 680 A8u kn88 San lranclsco CA Class A (l8)
k88W 8arrow Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 690 A8u
Clear 700 A8u WLW ClnclnaLLl CP Class A (lA)
k8?8 Anchorage Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 710 A8u WC8 new ?ork n? Class A (l8)
kl8C SeaLLle WA Class A (l8)
Clear 720 A8u WCn Chlcago lL Class A (lA)
kC1Z koLzebue Ak Class A (ln)
kuWn Las vegas nv Class 8 (llA)
Clear 730 A8u
Clear 740 A8u
Clear 730 A8u WS8 ALlanLa CA Class A (lA)
klCu Anchorage Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 760 A8u W!8 ueLrolL Ml Class A (lA)
Clear 770 A8u WA8C new ?ork n? Class A (lA)
kkC8 Albuquerque nM Class 8 (llA)
Clear 780 A8u W88M Chlcago lL Class A (lA)
knCM nome Ak Class A (ln)
kkCP 8eno nv Class 8 (llA)
8eglonal 790 8u
Clear 800 A8u
Clear 810 A8u kCC San lranclsco CA Class A (l8)
WC? SchenecLady n? Class A (l8)
Clear 820 A8u W8A lorL WorLh 1x Class A (lA)
kC8l lalrbanks Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 830 A8u WCCC Mlnneapolls Mn Class A (lA)
Clear 840 A8u WPAS Loulsvllle k? Class A (lA)
kA8n Long lsland Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 830 A8u kCA uenver CC Class A (l8)
klC? nome Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 860 A8u
Clear 870 A8u WWL new Crleans LA Class A (lA)
kSkC McCraLh Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 880 A8u WC8S new ?ork n? Class A (lA)
k8vn LexlngLon nL Class 8 (llA)
Clear 890 A8u WLS Chlcago lL Class A (lA)
k88l Pomer Ak Class A (ln)
kuxu SL Ceorge u1 Class 8 (llA)
Clear 900 A8u
8eglonal 910 8u
8eglonal 920 8u
8eglonal 930 8u
Clear 940 A8u
8eglonal 930 8u
8eglonal 960 8u
8eglonal 970 8u
8eglonal 980 8u
Clear 990 A8u
Clear 1000 A8u WLu Chlcago lL Class A (lA)
kCMC SeaLLle WA Class A (l8)
Clear 1010 A8u
Clear 1020 A8u kukA lLLsburgh A Class A (lA)
kCkn 8oswell nM Class 8 (llA)
kAxx Lagle 8lver Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 1030 A8u W8Z 8osLon MA Class A (lA)
k1WC Casper W? Class 8 (llA)
Clear 1040 A8u WPC ues Molnes lA Class A (lA)
Clear 1030 A8u
Clear 1060 A8u k?W hlladelphla A Class A (l8)
Clear 1070 A8u knx Los Angeles CA Class A (l8)
Clear 1080 A8u W1lC ParLford C1 Class A (l8)
k8Lu uallas 1x Class A (l8)
kASP Anchorage Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 1090 A8u kAA? LlLLle 8ock A8 Class A (l8)
W8AL 8alLlmore Mu Class A (l8)
Clear 1100 A8u W1AM Cleveland CP Class A (lA)
knZZ Crand !uncLlon CC Class 8 (llA)
Clear 1110 A8u W81 CharloLLe nC Class A (l8)
klA8 Cmaha nL Class A (l8)
Clear 1120 A8u kMCx SL Louls MC Class A (lA)
knW Lugene C8 Class 8 (llA)
Clear 1130 A8u kWkP ShreveporL LA Class A (l8)
WnLW new ?ork n? Class A (l8)
Clear 1140 A8u W8vA 8lchmond vA Class A (l8)
8eglonal 1130 8u
Clear 1160 A8u kSL SalL Lake ClLy u1 Class A (lA)
Clear 1170 A8u kvCC 1ulsa Ck Class A (l8)
WWvA Wheellng Wv Class A (l8)
k!n norLh ole Ak Class A (ln)
Clear 1180 A8u WPAM 8ochesLer n? Class A (lA)
kCll kallspell M1 Class 8 (llA)
Clear 1190 A8u kLx orLland C8 Class A (l8)
Clear 1200 A8u WCAl San AnLonlo 1x Class A (lA)
Clear 1210 A8u WP1 hlladelphla A Class A (lA)
kC?n Cuymon Ck Class 8 (llA)
Clear 1220 A8u
8eglonal 1230 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1230 C SLaLlons ln coLermlnous 48 sLaLes
8eglonal 1240 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1240 C SLaLlons ln coLermlnous 48 sLaLes
8eglonal 1230 8u
8eglonal 1260 8u
8eglonal 1270 8u
8eglonal 1280 8u
8eglonal 1290 8u
8eglonal 1300 8u
8eglonal 1310 8u
8eglonal 1320 8u
8eglonal 1330 8u
8eglonal 1340 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1340 C SLaLlons ln Lhe coLermlnous 48 sLaLes
8eglonal 1330 8u
8eglonal 1360 8u
8eglonal 1370 8u
8eglonal 1380 8u
8eglonal 1390 8u
8eglonal 1400 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1400 C SLaLlons ln Lhe coLermlnous 48 sLaLes
8eglonal 1410 8u
8eglonal 1420 8u
8eglonal 1430 8u
8eglonal 1440 8u
8eglonal 1430 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1430 C SLaLlons ln Lhe coLermlnous 48 sLaLes
8eglonal 1460 8u
8eglonal 1470 8u
8eglonal 1480 8u
8eglonal 1490 8 SLaLlons ln Ak Pl 8 and Lhe uS vl
Local 1490 C SLaLlons ln Lhe conLermlnous 48 sLaLes
Clear 1300 A8u W1C WashlngLon uC Class A (l8)
kS1 SL aul Mn Class A (l8)
Clear 1310 A8u WLAC nashvllle 1n Class A (l8)
kCA Spokane WA Class A (l8)
Clear 1320 A8u WWk8 8uffalo n? Class A (l8)
kCMA Cklahoma ClLy Ck Class A (l8)
Clear 1330 A8u kl8k SacramenLo CA Class A (l8)
WCk? ClnclnaLLl CP Class A (l8)
Clear 1340 A8u kxLL WaLerloo lA Class A (l8)
Clear 1330 A8u
Clear 1360 A8u knZ8 8akersfleld CA Class A (l8)
WCLW new ?ork n? Class A (l8)
Clear 1370 A8u
Clear 1380 A8u
8eglonal 1390 8u
8eglonal 1600 8u
8eglonal 1610 8u
8eglonal 1620 8u
8eglonal 1630 8u
8eglonal 1640 8u
8eglonal 1630 8u
8eglonal 1660 8u
8eglonal 1670 8u
8eglonal 1680 8u
8eglonal 1690 8u
8eglonal 1700 8u

2 lf Lhe sLaLlon ls speclflcally llsLed ln Lhe Lable on Lhe acLual frequency ln Lhe acLual clLy Lhen Lhe
uomesLlc Class for Lhe sLaLlon ls deflned on Lhe above llsL (Call slgn changes donL maLLer Lhe
classlflcaLlon remalns wlLh Lhe sLaLlon noL Lhe call slgn)
noLe LhaL all Lhe former Class ln sLaLlons are locaLed ln Alaska whlle all Lhe former Class lA and former
Class l8 sLaLlons are locaLed only ln Lhe coLermlnous 48 sLaLes Cnly ln Alaska mlghL lL be posslble Lo
asslgn new Class A sLaLlons

3 lf Lhe sLaLlon of lnLeresL ls noL speclflcally llsLed above on Lhe acLual frequency ln Lhe acLual clLy Lhe
uomesLlc Class musL be deLermlned from Lhe avallable classes for Lhe frequency

lf Lhe avallable classes are A 8 and u Lhen Lhe uomesLlc Class wlll be Class 8 lL cannoL be Class A
because all of Lhe Class A sLaLlons are llsLed above lL cannoL be Class u because Lhe Commlsslon wlll noL
auLhorlze new Class u sLaLlons (unless Lhe sLaLlon had been prevlously llcensed as Class 8 and Lhe
sLaLlon ls downgradlng Lo lLs nlghLLlme operaLlon Lo Class u)
lf Lhe sLaLlon ls an exlsLlng dayLlmeonly sLaLlon Lhe class wlll be Class u

lf Lhe avallable classes are 8 and u Lhen Lhe uomesLlc Class wlll be Class 8 lL cannoL be Class u because
Lhe Commlsslon wlll noL auLhorlze new Class u sLaLlons (unless Lhe sLaLlon had been prevlously llcensed
as Class 8 and Lhe sLaLlon ls downgradlng Lo lLs nlghLLlme operaLlon Lo Class u)
lf Lhe sLaLlon ls an exlsLlng dayLlmeonly sLaLlon Lhe class wlll be Class u

lf Lhe avallable classes are 8 and C Lhen Lhe uomesLlc Class wlll generally be Class C Powever lf Lhe
sLaLlon ls ln Alaska Pawall uerLo 8lco or Lhe uS vlrgln lslands Lhen Lhe uomesLlc Class ls Class 8

4 1he rules adopLed ln MM uockeL 97267 allow exlsLlng unllmlLedLlme Class 8 (formerly Class ll and lll)
sLaLlons Lo volunLarlly reclasslfy Lhelr nlghLLlme operaLlons Lo Class u lf Lhey flnd lL advanLageous Lo do
so 1hls ls Lhe CnL? lnsLance where new Class u sLaLlons are allowed LxlsLlng Class u dayLlmeonly
sLaLlons wlll remaln so classlfled
An AM sLaLlon can have only one llcensed class 1he llcensed dayLlme class cannoL be dlfferenL Lhan Lhe
llcensed nlghLLlme class lf Lhe sLaLlon ls downgradlng lLs nlghLLlme operaLlon Lo Class u Lhen Lhe
consLrucLlon permlL wlll have a dlfferenL class Lhan Lhe llcense Cnce Lhe consLrucLlon permlL becomes
llcensed as Class u Lhen any llcensed dayLlme record wlll be changed Lo Class u also


1he 8eglon 2 Class
Cnce Lhe uomesLlc Class has been obLalned Lhe 8eglon 2 Class ls easlly deLermlned

uomesLlc Class 8eglon 2 Class

A A
8 8
C C
u 8


Cld Lo new Class Converslons
8ecause Lhe old classlflcaLlons for AM sLaLlons wlll be encounLered ln older documenLs perLalnlng Lo AM
radlo we have provlded Lhls converslon Lable for your convenlence

Cld uomesLlc Class new uomesLlc Class
l A
ll 8
lll 8
lv C
llS u
lllS u
llu
(uayLlme only) u


lM SLaLlon Classes and Servlce ConLours

1he followlng Lable llsLs Lhe varlous classes of lM sLaLlons Lhe reference faclllLles for each sLaLlon class
and Lhe proLecLed and clLy grade conLours for each sLaLlon class A conLour may be vlsuallzed by
lmaglnlng a rough clrcle surroundlng a LransmlLLer slLe aL some dlsLance where Lhe clrcle represenLs a
cerLaln fleld sLrengLh value wlLh greaLer radlo fleld sLrengLhs lnslde and lesser radlo fleld sLrengLhs
ouLslde 1he dlsLances Lo Lhe conLours hereln were derlved uslng Lhe maxlmum effecLlve radlaLed power
(L8) and anLenna helghL above average Lerraln (PAA1) comblnaLlon permlLLed for each sLaLlon class
(see SecLlon 73211) and assumes unlform (flaL) Lerraln ln all dlrecLlons ln pracLlce Lhe dlsLances Lo a
speclfled conLour for a glven lM sLaLlon ln a glven dlrecLlon wlll vary from Lhe llsLed value dependlng on
Lhe effecLs of Lerraln ln LhaL dlrecLlon

1he llsLed values are for commerclal lM sLaLlons 1hls daLa also holds Lrue for noncommerclal
educaLlonal sLaLlons excepL LhaL Lhe 70 d8u clLy grade requlremenL of 47 Cl8 SecLlon 73313(a) does
noL apply Lo noncommerclal educaLlonal sLaLlons ln Lhe porLlon of Lhe lM band reserved for
noncommerclal educaLlonal use (881 Lo 919 MPz) lease noLe however LhaL Lhe 60 d8u conLour musL
encompass 30 porLlon of Lhe communlLy of llcense ln addlLlon please noLe LhaL Lhe dlsLances Lo
reserved band noncommerclal educaLlonal sLaLlons proLecLed conLours for Class 8 and Class 81 sLaLlons
are Lhe same as Lhe dlsLances llsLed for Class C2 and Class C3 sLaLlons respecLlvely slnce Lhe proLecLed
conLour for all reserved band sLaLlons ls 60 d8u ( 10 mv/m )

lor dlfferenL comblnaLlons of L8 and PAA1 you may deLermlne Lhe appllcable lM sLaLlon class by
uslng our lM propagaLlon curves calculaLlons program and comparlng Lhe resulL wlLh Lhe Lable below
8e sure Lo use Lhe 60 d8u l(3030) conLour slnce lL ls on Lhe basls of LhaL conLour (noL Lhe 70 or 34 or 37
d8u conLour) LhaL equlvalence beLween faclllLles ls deLermlned

ln addlLlon lf you know Lhe sLaLlon class and Lhe anLenna helghL above average Lerraln (PAA1) you may
use our lMpower program Lo calculaLe Lhe effecLlve radlaLed power (L8) needed Lo achleve maxlmum
coverage for Lhe selecLed sLaLlon class 1hls program wlll also advlse wheLher Lhe sLaLlon class ls valld ln
Lhe selecLed sLaLe

lor lM mlnlmum separaLlon requlremenLs especlally for commerclal lM sLaLlons please see our
documenL lM 8adlo SLaLlon Spaclng SLandards

lM SLaLlon Class 8eference (Maxlmum) laclllLles for SLaLlon Class
(see 47 Cl8 SecLlon 73211)
L8 (ln kW) / PAA1 (ln meLers)

lM roLecLed or rlmary Servlce ConLour

ulsLance Lo roLecLed or rlmary Servlce ConLour (km) ulsLance Lo 70 d8u (or 316 mv/m) ClLy Crade
or rlnclpal CommunlLy Coverage ConLour
(see 47 Cl8 SecLlon 73313)

(km)

d8u mv/m
Class A 60 kW / 100 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 283 km 162 km
Class 81 230 kW / 100 meLers 37 d8u 071 mv/m 447 km 232 km
Class 8 300 kW / 130 meLers 34 d8u 030 mv/m 631 km 326 km
Class C3 230 kW / 100 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 391 km 232 km
Class C2 300 kW / 130 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 322 km 326 km
Class C1 1000 kW / 299 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 723 km 300 km
Class C0 (Czero) 1000 kW / 430 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 834 km 390 km
Class C 1000 kW / 600 meLers 60 d8u 10 mv/m 918 km 677 km
noLes Class 8 and 81 sLaLlons are auLhorlzed only ln Zones l and lA whlch lnclude Lhe followlng sLaLes
and areas CA (souLh of 40 laLlLude) C1 uC uL lL ln MA Mu coasLal ML Ml (souLh of 433 laLlLude)
n! nP (souLh of 433 laLlLude) n? (souLh of 433 laLlLude) CP A 8 8l norLhern easLern vA vl
v1 (souLh of 433 laLlLude) souLheasLern Wl Wv Class C C0 C1 C2 and C3 sLaLlons are noL auLhorlzed
ln Zones l or lA buL may be auLhorlzed elsewhere See SecLlon 73203 for Lhe exacL zone boundarles
?ou may also use lMpower Lo deLermlne wheLher a parLlcular class ls valld ln a glven sLaLe

1 AbouL 8adlo Channels lM
Local lM radlo sLaLlons have numbers such as 1027 or 983 1hose numbers are noL arblLrary 1heyre
asslgned by Lhe lCC and represenL Lhe frequency aL whlch LhaL radlo sLaLlon can operaLe lor Lhe lM
broadcasL band Lhe frequency specLrum ls beLween 88 and 108 MPz lLs dlvlded lnLo 100 channels of
200 kPz each Lach frequency has lLs own channel All lM frequencles end wlLh an odd number 883
887 889 and so on 881 ls channel 201 883 ls channel 202 883 ls channel 203 Some of Lhese
channels are deslgnaLed speclflcally for noncommerclal educaLlonal conLenL


AbouL 8adlo Channels AM
AM band channels whlch operaLe from 333 Lo 1703 kPz are named afLer Lhe frequencles Lhey operaLe
on 1hey are segregaLed lnLo groups by llC accordlng Lo Lhe followlng

A Class A sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon (LhaL ls lL can broadcasL 24 hours per day) LhaL operaLes on
a clear channel 1he operaLlng power shall noL be less Lhan 10 kllowaLLs (kW) or more Lhan 30 kW

A Class 8 sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon Class 8 sLaLlons are auLhorlzed Lo operaLe wlLh a mlnlmum
power of 0230 kW (230 waLLs) and a maxlmum power of 30 kW (lf a Class 8 sLaLlon operaLes wlLh less
Lhan 0230 kW Lhe 8MS musL be equal Lo or greaLer Lhan 141 mv/m aL 1 km for Lhe acLual power) lf
Lhe sLaLlon ls auLhorlzed Lo operaLe ln Lhe expanded band (1610 Lo 1700 kPz) Lhe maxlmum power ls 10
kW

A Class C sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon LhaL operaLes on a local channel 1he power shall noL be
less Lhan 023 kW nor more Lhan 1 kW Class C sLaLlons LhaL are llcensed Lo operaLe wlLh 0100 kW may
conLlnue Lo operaLe as llcensed

A Class u sLaLlon operaLes ln elLher dayLlme llmlLed Llme or unllmlLed Llme wlLh a nlghLLlme power less
Lhan 0230 kW and an equlvalenL 8MS anLenna fleld less Lhan 141 mv/m aL 1 km for Lhe acLual power
Class u sLaLlons shall operaLe wlLh dayLlme powers noL less Lhan 0230 kW nor more Lhan 30 kW nC1L
lf a sLaLlon ls an exlsLlng dayLlmeonly sLaLlon lLs class wlll be Class u
Source lCC 8adlo and 1elevlslon 8roadcasL 8ules 47 Cl8 arL 73 AM Classes

ln general channels are doled ouL by Lhe lCC on a flrsLcome flrsLserve basls


Cb[ecLlonable ConLenL
1he lCC and Lhe llrsL AmendmenL ofLen seem aL odds 1he lCC was founded wlLh Lhe provlslon LhaL lL
would noL be ln Lhe buslness of censorlng communlcaLlons 8adlo sLaLlon operaLors ln response Lo Lhelr
audlences were expecLed Lo selfcensor Lhelr broadcasLs Powever Lhe lCC sLaLes LhaL lL ls a vlolaLlon
of federal law Lo alr obscene programmlng aL any Llme lL ls also a vlolaLlon of federal law Lo alr lndecenL
programmlng or profane language durlng cerLaln hours Congress has glven Lhe lederal CommunlcaLlons
Commlsslon (lCC) Lhe responslblllLy for admlnlsLraLlvely enforclng Lhese laws 1he lCC may revoke a
sLaLlon llcense lmpose a moneLary forfelLure or lssue a warnlng lf a sLaLlon alrs obscene lndecenL or
profane maLerlal

Several cases have gone Lo Lhe Supreme CourL Lo challenge lCC flnes and levles 1he lCC decllned Lo
regulaLe obscenlLy on saLelllLe radlo because lLs subscrlpLlon based

1ower LocaLlon and PelghLs
1he lCC regulaLes Lhe helghL and locaLlon of radlo Lowers 1he llA and lCC boLh have [urlsdlcLlon over
communlcaLlon Lower regulaLlons buL ln general Lhe lCC ls Lhe agency LhaL deLermlnes wheLher a
vlolaLlon has occurred and whaL flnes Lo levy 1he regulaLlons guldlng slze condlLlon and locaLlons of
Lowers are largely deslgned Lo prevenL alr Lrafflc lncldence lnvolvlng communlcaLlon Lowers llnes for
lgnorlng regulaLlons can be very hlgh and can be lmposed for lnfracLlons such as noL palnLlng cable
wlres or noL noLlfylng Lhe llA of llghL ouLages


Classes of AM broadcasL channels and sLaLlons

(a) Clear channel A clear channel ls one on whlch sLaLlons are asslgned Lo serve wlde areas 1hese
sLaLlons are proLecLed from ob[ecLlonable lnLerference wlLhln Lhelr prlmary servlce areas and
dependlng on Lhe class of sLaLlon Lhelr secondary servlce areas SLaLlons operaLlng on Lhese channels
are classlfled as follows

(1) Class A sLaLlon A Class A sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon LhaL operaLes on a clear channel and ls
deslgned Lo render prlmary and secondary servlce over an exLended area and aL relaLlvely long dlsLances
from lLs LransmlLLer lLs prlmary servlce area ls proLecLed from ob[ecLlonable lnLerference from oLher
sLaLlons on Lhe same and ad[acenL channels and lLs secondary servlce area ls proLecLed from
lnLerference from oLher sLaLlons on Lhe same channel (See 73182) 1he operaLlng power shall noL be
less Lhan 10 kW nor more Lhan 30 kW (Also see 7323(a))

(2) Class 8 sLaLlon A Class 8 sLaLlon ls an unllmlLed Llme sLaLlon whlch ls deslgned Lo render servlce only
over a prlmary servlce area Class 8 sLaLlons are auLhorlzed Lo operaLe wlLh a mlnlmum power of 023
kW (or lf less Lhan 023 kW an equlvalenL 8MS anLenna fleld of aL leasL 141 mv/m aL 1 km) and a
maxlmum power of 30 kW or 10 kW for sLaLlons LhaL are auLhorlzed Lo operaLe ln Lhe 16031703 kPz
band

(3) Class u sLaLlon A Class u sLaLlon operaLes elLher dayLlme llmlLed Llme or unllmlLed Llme wlLh
nlghLLlme power less Lhan 023 kW and an equlvalenL 8MS anLenna fleld of less Lhan141 mv/m aL one
km Class u sLaLlons shall operaLe wlLh dayLlme powers noL less Lhan 023 kW nor more Lhan 30 kW
nlghLLlme operaLlons of Class u sLaLlons are noL afforded proLecLlon and musL proLecL all Class A and
Class 8 operaLlons durlng nlghLLlme hours new Class u sLaLlons LhaL had noL been prevlously llcensed as
Class 8 wlll noL be auLhorlzed

(b) 8eglonal Channel A reglonal channel ls one on whlch Class 8 and Class u sLaLlons may operaLe and
serve prlmarlly a prlnclpal cenLer of populaLlon and Lhe rural area conLlguous LhereLo

noLe unLll Lhe norLh Amerlcan 8eglonal 8roadcasLlng AgreemenL (nA88A) ls LermlnaLed wlLh respecL Lo
Lhe 8ahama lslands and Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc radlaLlon Loward Lhose counLrles from a Class 8 sLaLlon
may noL exceed Lhe level LhaL would be produced by an omnldlrecLlonal anLenna wlLh a LransmlLLed
power of 3 kW or such lower level as wlll comply wlLh nA88A requlremenLs for proLecLlon of sLaLlons ln
Lhe 8ahama lslands and Lhe uomlnlcan 8epubllc agalnsL ob[ecLlonable lnLerference

(c) Local channel A local channel ls one on whlch sLaLlons operaLe unllmlLed Llme and serve prlmarlly a
communlLy and Lhe suburban and rural areas lmmedlaLely conLlguous LhereLo

(1) Class C sLaLlon A Class C sLaLlon ls a sLaLlon operaLlng on a local channel and ls deslgned Lo render
servlce only over a prlmary servlce area LhaL may be reduced as a consequence of lnLerference ln
accordance wlLh 73182 1he power shall noL be less Lhan 023 kW nor more Lhan 1 kW Class C
sLaLlons LhaL are llcensed Lo operaLe wlLh 01 kW may conLlnue Lo do so



lCC CWL8S Anu lunC1lCnS

88CAuCAS1 8AulC Anu 1v

Speclflc lCC funcLlons lnclude asslgnlng frequency power and call slgns for radlo allocaLlng specLrum
space for AM and lM radlo as well as vPl and uPl Lelevlslon broadcasL servlces deslgnaLlng slgn
on/slgnoff Llmes and operaLlng power for broadcasL sLaLlons AlLhough Lhe lCC ls prohlblLed from
censorlng mosL programmlng conLenL lL does however regulaLe maLerlal deemed lndecenL or lllegal
(whlch lncludes for example clgareLLe adverLlslng) some aspecLs of programmlng for chlldren and
pollLlcal campalgn adverLlslng

1he lCC llmlLs Lhe number of broadcasLlng ouLleLs LhaL may be owned by a slngle enLlLy and revlews
Lhese regulaLlons blennlally 1he effecL of LelecommunlcaLlons reform has been Loward loosenlng such
resLrlcLlons ln 1996 Lhe lCC removed Lhe upper llmlL for Lhe number of 1v sLaLlons LhaL could be owned
naLlonally provlded LhaL Lhe comblned vlewershlp does noL exceed 33 percenL of all uS households
WlLhln local markeLs resLrlcLlons are much LlghLer Lo prevenL a medla monopoly ln general Lhe same
company may noL own a 1v sLaLlon along wlLh a newspaper a second 1v sLaLlon a cable sysLem or a
radlo sLaLlon 8adlo sLaLlon ownershlp rules Lend Lo be more llberal allowlng up Lo elghL sLaLlons ln a
slngle markeL dependlng on Lhe LoLal number of sLaLlons servlng LhaL markeL As wlLh Lelevlslon Lhere ls
no llmlL on Lhe number of sLaLlons a company can hold naLlonally

CA8LL 1v

1hrough lLs Cable Servlces 8ureau Lhe commlsslon llcenses cable Lelevlslon sysLems and regulaLes cable
prlclng Lechnlcal sLandards and programmlng rlclng ls only regulaLed when local cable compeLlLlon
does noL exlsL accordlng Lo lCC deflnlLlons 1he lCC requlres LhaL cerLaln local broadcasL programmlng
be made avallable Lhrough cable sysLems and LhaL aL leasL one noncommerclal channel be carrled on
every cable sysLem 1he agency also mandaLes LhaL cable sysLems have a formal equal employmenL
opporLunlLy program monlLors compllance and lnvesLlgaLes clalms of dlscrlmlnaLlon


A8Cu1 1S
1he Swedlsh osL and 1elecom AuLhorlLy (1S) monlLors Lhe elecLronlc communlcaLlons and posLal
secLors ln Sweden
1he Lerm 'elecLronlc communlcaLlons' lncludes Lelephony Lhe lnLerneL and radlo
1he AuLhorlLy works wlLh consumer and compeLlLlon lssues efflclenL uLlllsaLlon of resources and secure
communlcaLlons
1he ulrecLorCeneral of 1S ls Cran Marby