U-matic
U-matic is the name of a videocassette format developed by Sony in 1969. It was among the first video formats to contain the videotape inside a cassette, as opposed to the various open-reel formats of the time. The videotape was 3/4" wide, so the format was often known as 'three-quarter-inch'. In the early 1980s, Sony introduced the semi backwards-compatible High-band or BVU (Broadcast Video U-matic) format, and the 'original' U-matic format became known as 'Low-band'. This High-band format had an improved colour recording system and lower noise levels. BVU gained immense popularity in ENG (Electronic News Gathering) and location programme-making, spelling the end of 16mm film in everyday production. By the early 1990s, Sony's 1/2" Betacam SP format had all but replaced BVU outside of corporate and 'budget' programme making. Sony made a final improvement to BVU by further improving the recording system and giving it the same 'SP' suffix as Betacam. First generation BVU-SP and Beta-SP recordings were hard to tell apart; despite this the writing was on the wall for the U-matic family. U-matic is no longer used as a mainstream production format, yet it has such a lasting appeal as a cheap, well specified, and hard-wearing format that almost every television facility the world-over still has a U-matic recorder. Nearly 36 years after it was developed, the format is still in daily use for the menial tasks of the industry, being more highly specialized and suited to the needs of production staff than the domestic VHS.
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