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Timeline of the introduction of color television in countries and territories
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This is a list of when the first color television broadcasts were transmitted to the general public. Non-public field tests, closed-circuit demonstrations and broadcasts available from other countries are not included, while including dates when the last black-and-white stations in the country switched to color or shutdown all black-and white television sets, which has been highlighted in red. This list also includes nations subdivisions.
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List in alphabetical order by country and territory
- Note: Asterisks (*) after locations below are for "Television in LOCATION" links.
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List of countries and territories that never had black and white television
Summarize
Perspective
Countries and territories that never had black and white television (i.e., their first broadcasts were in color) are not included in the table above.
Afghanistan
Åland Islands
Andorra
Antigua and Barbuda
Bahrain
Bhutan
Bonaire
Botswana (Bechuanaland)
British Virgin Islands
Brunei
Cameroon
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Chad
Christmas Island
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Collectivity of Saint Martin
Comoros
Cook Islands
Dominica
Eritrea
Eswatini (Swaziland)
Falkland Islands
Faroe Islands
Federated States of Micronesia
Fiji
Grenada
Guinea-Bissau
Kiribati
Laos
Lesotho
Liechtenstein
Macau
Malawi (Nyasaland)
Marshall Islands
Mayotte
Montserrat
Namibia (South West Africa)
Nauru
Nepal
Niue
Norfolk Island
Palestine
Palau
Papua New Guinea
Pitcairn Islands
Rwanda
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Helena
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
São Tomé and Príncipe
San Marino
Seychelles
Sint Maarten
Sint Eustatius
Solomon Islands
Somalia
Somaliland
South Africa
South Ossetia
South Sudan
Sri Lanka (Ceylon)
Tanzania (Tanganyika)
Timor-Leste
Tokelau
Tonga
Turks and Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Vanuatu
Vatican City
Wallis and Futuna
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List by subdivsions within each nation
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Argentina
Buenos Aires - 1978
Corrientes - 1978
Misiones - 1978
Río Negro - 1978
San Luis - 1978
Santiago del Estero - 1978
Tierra del Fuego - 1978
Formosa - 1979
Jujuy - 1979
La Pampa - 1979
Neuquén - 1979
Catamarca - 1980
Chaco - 1980
Chubut - 1980
Córdoba - 1980
Entre Ríos - 1980
La Rioja - 1980
Mendoza - 1980
Salta - 1980
San Juan - 1980
Santa Cruz - 1980
Santa Fe - 1980
Tucumán - 1980
Australia
Australian Capital Territory - 1975
Queensland - 1975
Tasmania - 1975
New South Wales - 1975
Victoria - 1976
Northern Territory - 1978
Austria
- Lower Austria - 1969
- Upper Austria - 1969
- Vienna - 1969
- Salzburg - 1970
- Vorralberg - 1970
- Carinthia - 1971
- Burgenland - 1972
- Tyrol - 1972
- Styria - 1974
Belgium
Brazil
Rio Grande do Sul - 1972/1979
Rio de Janeiro - 1972
São Paulo - 1972
Minas Gerais - 1973
Maranhão - 1973
Acre - 1975
Amapá - 1975
Mato Grosso do Sul - 1974
Mato Grosso - 1974
Amazonas - 1972/1975
Ceará - 1975
Bahia - 1973
Goiás - 1976
Pará - 1977/1978
Paraná - 1975
Roraima - 1975
Sergipe - 1977
Espírito Santo - 1976
Paraíba - 1977
Piauí - 1976
Rondônia - 1976
Tocantins - 1976
Pernambuco - 1977
Santa Catarina - 1979
Alagoas - 1975/1978
Rio Grande do Norte - 1978
Canada
Alberta - 1966
British Columbia - 1966
Manitoba - 1966
Ontario - 1966
Quebec - 1966
Saskatchewan - 1966
Newfoundland and Labrador - 1967
New Brunswick - 1968
Nova Scotia - 1968
Prince Edward Island - 1969
Yukon - 1971
Northwest Territories - 1972
Nunavut - 1972
Chile
China
- Beijing - 1973
- Shanghai - 1974
- Guangdong - 1976
- Jilin - 1977
- Fujian - 1978
- Hainan - 1978
- Tibet - 1979
- Inner Mongolia - 1979
- Ningxia - 1980
- Anhui - 1981
- Chongqing - 1981
- Gansu - 1981
- Heilionjiang - 1981
- Hunan - 1981
- Jiangxi - 1981
- Shandong - 1981
- Shanxi - 1981
- Xinjiang - 1982[138]
- Henan - 1983
Colombia
Denmark
- Hovedstaden - 1968
- Nordjylland - 1969
- Syddanmark - 1970
Dominican Republic
- Santiago - 1969
- Santo Domingo - 1970
- Azua - 1973
- Duarte - 1973
- Hato Mayor - 1973
- La Altagracia - 1973
- La Romana - 1973
- La Vega - 1973
- Monte Cristi - 1973
- Pedernales - 1973
- Peravia - 1973
- Samaná - 1973
- Salcedo - 1973
Ecuador
Pichincha Region - 1973
Azuay - 1976
Cotopaxi - 1978
Esmeraldas - 1978
Galápagos Islands - 1978
Loja - 1978
Orellana - 1978
Pastaza - 1978
Tungurahua - 1978
Egypt
- Cairo - 1973
- Damietta - 1974
- Suez - 1974
- Port Said - 1975
El Salvador
- San Salvador - 1973
- La Libertad - 1974
- Santa Ana - 1974
Estonia
- Harju - 1972
- Hiiu - 1974
- Ida-Viru - 1974
- Jõgeva - 1974
- Lääne-Viru - 1974
- Rapla - 1974
- Valga - 1974
Ethiopia
- Addis Ababa - 1979
- Amhara - 1984
- Benishangul-Gumuz - 1984
- Gambela - 1984
- Harari - 1984
- Oromia - 1984
- Sidama - 1984
- Southern - 1984
- Tigray - 1984
Finland
- Nyland - 1969
- Kainuu - 1971
- Lapland - 1975
- North Ostrobothnia - 1979
- North Karelia - 1979
- Satakunta - 1979
France
Brittany - 1968
Normandy - 1967
French Polynesia - 1972
Bas-Rhin - 1968
French Guiana - 1974
Lorraine - 1968
Rhône - 1967
Burgundy - 1968
Rhône-Alpes - 1968
Aquitaine - 1968
Georgia
- Tbilisi - 1968
Ghana
- Greater Accra - 1980
- Ashanti - 1983
- Bono - 1983
- Central - 1983
- Eastern - 1983
- North East - 1983
- Northern - 1983
- Oti - 1983
- Savannah - 1983
- Upper East - 1983
- Upper West - 1983
- Volta - 1983
- Western - 1983
- Western North - 1983
Greece
- Attica - 1976
- Crete - 1978
- Peloponeese - 1978
- Thessaly - 1978
- Epirus - 1981
- Western Greece - 1981
- Western Macedonia - 1981
Hungary
- Budapest - 1968
- Heves - 1972
- Vas - 1972
- Békés - 1975
- Bács-Kiskun - 1976
- Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok - 1980
Indonesia
Jakarta - 1977
Bali - 1978
Aceh - 1979
Bengkulu - 1979
Gorontalo - 1979
Jawa Timur - 1979
Kalimantan Barat - 1979
Kalimantan Selatan - 1979
Kalimantan Tengah - 1979
Lampung - 1979
Nusa Tenggara Timur - 1979
Papua - 1979
Papua Barat - 1979
Sulawesi Selatan - 1979
Sulawesi Utara - 1979
Sumatera Selatan - 1979
Yogyakarta - 1979
Riau Islands - 1983
Italy
Japan
Kenya
- Nairobi - 1978
- Coast - 1979
- Rift Valley - 1979
- Eastern - 1980
Lithuania
Malaysia
Mauritius
- Port Louis - 1978
- Grand Port - 1980
- Flacq - 1981
- Savanne - 1981
Mexico
Ciudad de México - 1964
Baja California - 1965
Tamaulipas - 1967
Aguascalientes - 1968
Campeche - 1968
Chiapas - 1968
Chihuahua - 1968
Durango - 1968
Guanajuato - 1968
Guerrero - 1968
Hidalgo - 1968
Oaxaca - 1968
Puebla - 1968
Quintana Roo - 1968
Sinaloa - 1968
Sonora - 1968
Tabasco - 1968
Tlaxcala - 1968
Yucatán - 1968
Zacatecas - 1968
Morocco
- Rabat - Salé - Kénitra - 1972
- Grand Casablanca - Settat - 1973
- Marrakech - Safi - 1973
- Béni Mellal - Khénifra - 1974
Netherlands
Noord-Holland - 1967
Friesland - 1970
New Zealand
- Auckland - 1973
- Wellington - 1973
- Nelson - 1974
- Southland - 1974
- Tasman - 1974
- Waikato - 1974
- Marlborough - 1975
- Taranaki - 1975
Nicaragua
Managua - 1973
- North Caribbean Coast - 1975
- Boaco - 1976
- Chinandega - 1976
- Estelí - 1976
- Granada - 1976
- Jinotega - 1976
- Madriz - 1976
- Matagalpa - 1976
- Nueva Segovia - 1976
Nigeria
- Federal Capital Territory - 1974
- Lagos - 1974
- Sokoto - 1975
- Borno - 1976
- Rivers - 1976
- Akwa Ibom - 1977
- Anambra - 1977
- Bayelsa - 1977
- Cross River - 1977
- Delta - 1977
- Ebonyi - 1977
- Edo - 1977
- Ekiti - 1977
- Gombe - 1977
- Imo - 1977
- Kaduna - 1977
- Kano - 1977
- Katsina - 1977
- Kogi - 1977
- Nasarawa - 1977
- Ogun - 1977
- Osun - 1977
- Oyo - 1977
- Plateau - 1977
- Taraba - 1977
- Yobe - 1977
- Zamfara - 1977
Norway
Oslo - 1972
- Trøndelag - 1975
- Agder - 1976
- Finnmark - 1976
- Rogaland - 1976
- Vestfold - 1976
Pakistan
Islamabad - 1976
- Sindh - 1982
- Balochistan - 1983
- Punjab - 1983
Panama
- Panamá - 1972
- Colón - 1974
- Emberá-Wounaan - 1974
- Herrera - 1974
Veraguas - 1974
Paraguay
- Asunción - 1979
- Central - 1979
- Alto Paraguay - 1981
- Amambay - 1981
- Boquerón - 1981
- Caazapá - 1981
- Concepcion - 1981
- Cordillera - 1981
- Guairá - 1981
- Itapúa - 1981
- Misiones - 1981
- Ñeembucú - 1981
- Paraguarí - 1981
- Presidente Hayes - 1981
- San Pedro - 1981
Peru
Philippines
Poland
- Mazovia - 1971
- Lesser Poland - 1973
- Lower Silesia - 1973
- Lublin - 1973
- Opole - 1973
- Podlachia - 1973
- Silesia - 1973
- West Pomerania - 1973
- Subcarpathia - 1975
- Holy Cross - 1976
Portugal
Romania
- Bucharest - 1983
- Bacău - 1985
- Botoșani - 1985
- Buzău - 1985
- Constanța - 1985
- Giurgiu - 1985
- Hunedoara - 1985
- Ilfov - 1985
- Maramureș - 1985
- Sibiu - 1985
- Suceava - 1985
- Tulcea - 1985
- Vâlcea - 1985
- Vrancea - 1985
Russia
Moscow - 1966
Saint Petersburg - 1969
Ivanovo - 1971
Omsk - 1969
Tambov - 1971
Belgorod - 1972
Perm Krai - 1972
Smolensk - 1973
Adygea - 1974
Buryatia - 1974
Amur - 1975
Penza - 1975
Magadan - 1976
Chechnya - 1977
Ingushetia - 1977
Chuvashia - 1979
Altai Republic - 1980
Chukotka - 1982
Yakutia - 1983[citation needed]
Saudi Arabia
- Riyadh - 1973
- Al Quarayyat - 1975
- Medina - 1975
- Najran - 1975
- Tabouk - 1975
- Asser - 1976
Spain
Madrid - 1972
Basque Country - 1972
Andalusia - 1972
Catalonia - 1973
Galicia - 1975
Asturias - 1975
Balearic Islands - 1976
Navarra - 1976
Valencian Community - 1976
Cantabria - 1977
Canary Islands - 1979
Switzerland
Tajikistan
- Dushanbe - 1975
- Khatlon - 1982
- Sughd - 1982
- Gorno-Badakhshan - 1984
Thailand
Turkey (Türkiye)
- Ankara - 1981
- Istanbul - 1981
- Hatay - 1983
- Bartın - 1984
- Düzce - 1984
- Edirne - 1984
- Izmir - 1984
- Kahramanmaraş - 1984
- Niğde - 1984
- Adana - 1984
- Adıyaman - 1984
- Diyarbakır - 1984
- Gaziantep - 1984
- Kilis - 1984
- Malatya - 1984
- Osmaniye - 1984
- Şanlıurfa - 1984
Turkmenistan
- Ashgabat - 1974
- Dasoguz - 1976
- Lebap - 1976
- Mary - 1976
United Arab Emirates
Dubai - 1974
United Kingdom
United States
New York - 1954
Pennsylvania - 1954
Texas - 1954
Illinois - 1956[139]
Hawaii - 1957[140]
Vermont - 1957
Washington - 1958
Florida - 1959
Georgia - 1959
Indiana - 1959
Kansas - 1960
Michigan - 1960
Nevada - 1960
Oklahoma - 1960
California - 1961
Massachusetts - 1961
Missouri - 1961
Kentucky - 1961
New Hampshire - 1961
Alabama - 1962
Idaho - 1962
Maine - 1962
Maryland - 1962
Utah - 1962
West Virginia - 1962
Iowa - 1963
Louisiana - 1963
North Carolina - 1963
North Dakota - 1963
Virginia - 1963
Wyoming - 1963
Colorado - 1964
Connecticut - 1964
Delaware - 1964
Minnesota - 1964
Mississippi - 1964
Montana - 1964
New Jersey - 1964
New Mexico - 1964
South Carolina - 1964
South Dakota - 1964
Wisconsin - 1964
Nebraska - 1965
Ohio - 1965
Oregon - 1965
Tennessee - 1965
Alaska - 1966
Rhode Island - 1966
Arizona - 1967
Arkansas - 1969
Uruguay
- Montevideo - 1981
- Cerro Largo - 1984
- Durazno - 1984
Lavalleja Department - 1984
- Salto - 1984
- Tacuarembó - 1984
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List of regional subdivisions and organizations that never had black and white television
Regional subdivisions and organisations that never had black and white television (i.e., their first broadcasts were in color) are not included in the table above.
See also
Notes
- It also could have been the OSKM system, but all the references available say "American NTSC standard".[21][22][23] At that time, it was only two years since the first black-and-white TV broadcasting in China at 1958 and only about a dozen cities had TV stations.[22] Therefore, it cannot be ruled out that the standard of the experimental color broadcast was different from OSKM (e.g., it might not use YUV, but used YIQ like the original NTSC), or that it might have used System M, which was incompatible with System D, the de facto standard for black-and-white TVs of China at that time.
- The exact time is undetermined, Xizang Television launched partial color broadcasting in October 1979 and Xinjiang Television in December 1979, but they may use black-and-white devices to broadcast recorded programmes from CCTV before 1984 and there are some black-and-white transmitters in used.[26]
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References
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