Terms of use

Acceptance

By opening a page of this reference you accept the conditions set out below. They are short, and they exist to keep the publication available and lawful. If you do not accept them, the appropriate course is to close the page, since the reference is offered as a whole and cannot be read in part under a different understanding.

Purpose of the reference

This reference is a theoretical account of communication standards, written for study. It is not a specification, and it does not replace one. Where a reader needs the formal syntax or the exact operation of a coding standard, the published standard is the authority, and this reference is only a guide to understanding it. Nothing here is offered as engineering advice for any particular arrangement, and no result is promised from following any description.

No products and no services

The reference does not distribute, host or endorse any product. It operates no financial, brokerage or broadcasting service, and it offers nothing for purchase. Any name of a standard, a body or a technique is used to identify the subject of study and does not imply any connection with the owner of that name. The editorial office receives no sponsorship and accepts no payment for coverage.

Permitted use

You may read, quote and cite this reference for study, teaching and research, provided that the source is named and the quotation is not altered in a way that changes its meaning. You may not present the material as your own, resell it, or reproduce it in bulk as part of another publication without written agreement. Linking to a page is welcome and needs no permission.

Accuracy and revision

The editorial office takes care to be accurate, and it corrects what it finds to be wrong. It cannot promise that every figure is exact, because many of the quantities it describes vary with the content and with the encoder. It therefore states where a figure is representative and where it is exact. Corrections are recorded by advancing the revision of the affected sheet, so a reader who quotes the revision can always identify the text they used.

Availability

The reference is offered as it stands, and the office may amend, reorganise or withdraw part of it. It does not promise that every page will remain reachable at every moment, and it accepts no liability for a loss caused by an interruption. A reader who depends on a particular figure for a formal purpose should confirm it against the published standard rather than against this account of it.

Governing terms

These conditions are read together with the privacy policy, the cookie policy and the disclaimer, which form part of them. Where a term in one document appears to conflict with another, the more specific document governs the matter it addresses. A reader who has a question about these terms may write to the editorial office through the contact page, and the office will answer as plainly as it can.

Final note

The reference exists because the principles of the digital video signal are worth understanding on their own terms, apart from any particular product. These conditions protect that purpose: they keep the material open to be read and cited, and they keep the office independent of the industries it describes. Nothing in them is intended to narrow the ordinary freedom of a reader to learn.