SECAM

SECAM is an analog color television system that was used in France, Russia and some other countries and territories of Europe and Africa. It was one of three major analog color television standards, the others being PAL and NTSC. Like PAL, a SECAM picture is also made up of 625 interlaced lines and is displayed at a rate of 25 frames per second (except SECAM-M). However, due to the way SECAM processes color information, it is not compatible with the German PAL video format standard. This page primarily discusses the SECAM colour encoding system. The articles on broadcast television systems and analog television further describe frame rates, image resolution, and audio modulation. SECAM video is composite video because the luminance (luma, monochrome image) and chrominance (chroma, color applied to the monochrome image) are transmitted together as one signal. All the countries using SECAM are currently in the process of conversion, or have already converted to Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB), the new pan-European standard for digital television. SECAM remained a major standard into the 2000s.

## MESECAM (home video recording)

MESECAM (marketing term: "SECAM-East") is a method of recording SECAM color signals onto VHS or Betamax video tape. It should not be mistaken for a television broadcasting standard.

The "Native" French SECAM recording (marketing term: "SECAM-West") was devised for machines sold for the French (and adjacent countries) market. At a later stage, countries where both PAL and SECAM signals were available developed a cheap method of converting PAL video machines to record SECAM signals, using only the PAL recording circuitry. Although being a workaround, MESECAM is much more widespread than the "native" French SECAM. It has been the only method of recording SECAM signals to VHS in almost all countries that used both PAL and SECAM, especially in many Eastern countries such as the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Mainland China, Mongolia, North Korea, India, Pakistan, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and parts of the Asian continent.

A tape produced by this method is not compatible with the "native" French SECAM tapes as produced by VCRs in the French market. It will play in black and white only, the color is lost. Most VHS machines advertised as "SECAM capable" outside France can be expected to be of the MESECAM variety only.

## Countries use the MESECAM home video recording method

### Americas

* Argentina (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-N)
* French Guiana (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)

### Europe

* Bulgaria (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
* Czechoslovakia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ Czech SR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ Slovak SR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Germany (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ East Germany (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ West Germany (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* France (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Greece (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Hungary (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Ireland (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-I)
* Italy (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Poland (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Romania (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
* Soviet Union (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
	+ Latvian SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ Lithuanian SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ Moldavian SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
	+ Russian SFSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
* Spain (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Sweden (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Turkey (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* United Kingdom (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-I)
* SFR Yugoslavia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Bosnia and Herzegovina (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Croatia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SAP Kosovo (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Macedonia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Montenegro (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Serbia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
	+ SR Slovenia (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-B/G)

### Africa

* Egypt (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Libya (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)

### Asia

* British Hong Kong (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-I)
* Cambodia (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with NTSC-M and PAL-B/G)
* Cyprus (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* India (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Iran (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
* Iraq (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)

!Template:Flag icon Israel (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Republic of Lebanon (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon State of Kuwait (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Mongolian People’s Republic (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Malaysia (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Sultanate of Oman (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Pakistan (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon People's Republic of China (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Republic of Ireland (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-I)
!Template:Flag icon Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with SECAM-M and PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Republic of Singapore (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Azerbaijan SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Georgian SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Kazakh SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Kirghiz SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Turkmen SSR (SECAM-D/K, simulcast with PAL-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Syria (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon United Arab Emirates (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Thailand (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-M and PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Turkey (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Vietnam (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with SECAM-M and PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Yemen (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Qatar (SECAM-B/G, simulcast with PAL-B/G)

## Oceania

!Template:Flag icon Australia (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon New Zealand (SECAM-L, simulcast with PAL-B/G)

## Countries use the SECAM television broadcasting standard

### Europe

!Template:Flag icon Belgium (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon East Germany (SECAM-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Finland (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon France (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon Ireland (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon United Kingdom (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon West Germany (SECAM-L)
!Template:Flag icon Yugoslavia (SECAM-D/K)

### Africa

!Template:Flag icon Egypt (SECAM-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Libya (SECAM-B/G)

### Asia

!Template:Flag icon China (SECAM-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Hong Kong (SECAM-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Kuwait (SECAM-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Lebanon (SECAM-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Macau (SECAM-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon North Korea (SECAM-D/K)
!Template:Flag icon Thailand (SECAM-B/G)
!Template:Flag icon Turkey
!Template:Flag icon United Arab Emirates (SECAM-B/G)