HD-MAC

HD-MAC is a proposed broadcast television systems standard by the European Commission in 1986 (MAC standard), a part of Eureka 95 project. It is an early attempt by the EEC to provide High-definition television (HDTV) in Europe. It is a complex mix of analogue signal (Multiplexed Analogue Components), multiplexed with digital sound, and assistance data for decoding (DATV). The video signal (1250 (1152 visible) lines/50 fields per second in 16:9 aspect ratio) was encoded with a modified D2-MAC encoder.

HD-MAC could be decoded by a standard D2-MAC receivers (SDTV), but in that mode only 625 (576) lines and certain artifacts were visible. To decode the signal in full resolution required a specific HD-MAC tuner.

Naming convention

The European Broadcasting Union video format description is as follows: width x height [scan type: i or p] / number of full frames per second

As an example, the 1280×720p/60 format provides sixty 1280x720 pixel progressively scanned pictures each second. Lines are transmitted in the natural sequence: 1, 2, 3, 4, and so on.