user5347: Just wondering, if now, as we broadcast free-to-air commercial television digitally, whether to still apply 'Broadcast Safe filters/effects'?

user14256: Depends on who you ask. Old traditional people who grew up back in the bad old analog days have the Safe Action Area and Safe Title Area embedded in their brains.  But even as old analog TV receivers evolved, there was less and less danger of losing the periphery of the frame to overscan.
With modern LCD, LED, plasma, whatever, TV screens, there is ZERO danger of overscan. It simply doesn't exist anymore. I now use a rule of thumb to keep any text or significant graphics at least 2 or 3% away from the edge, mostly as an aesthetic design rule.

user14523: There are three different things that get called "broadcast safe":

Colors gamut: You don't need to apply an NTSC broadcast safe filter, but you do want to make sure that your colors are all within gamut for the format you are using. If you use out of gamut colors, most of the time nothing happens. However, you run the risk of some very odd, very hard to troubleshoot problems cropping up on air.
Title & action safe: In the days of CRTs, there was a portion of the picture that would get cut off. That area varied from TV to TV and grew over time as the tube aged. Non-CRT displays don't suffer from the same issue, so the recommended safe areas are not as large as they used to be, but they still exist. Some modern displays artificially create an overscan and the bezel of some displays can block the edges even at reasonable viewing angles. Recommendations vary from 1% to 5% of the screen should be protected.
Center cut safe: 4:3 TVs do still exist in the world. How a 4:3 picture is created from a 16:9 signal varies. Sometimes it is created with a separate air chain by the broadcaster, sometimes the broadcaster downconverts the 16:9 to 4:3, and sometimes the 16:9 feed is downconverted in the viewers home. It is for this last reason that it is recommended that you still keep key elements (e.g., products, people talking, offer graphics and disclaimer text) within the center cut protected area of the picture.

In summary:

Use only colors within broadcast gamut.
Don't push important elements right to the edge of the screen.
Protect important visuals within the center cut safe area.


5347: <p>Just wondering, if now, as we broadcast free-to-air commercial television digitally, whether to still apply 'Broadcast Safe filters/effects'?</p>
 14256: <p>Depends on who you ask. Old traditional people who grew up back in the bad old analog days have the Safe Action Area and Safe Title Area embedded in their brains.  But even as old analog TV receivers evolved, there was less and less danger of losing the periphery of the frame to overscan.</p>

<p>With modern LCD, LED, plasma, whatever, TV screens, there is ZERO danger of overscan. It simply doesn't exist anymore. I now use a rule of thumb to keep any text or significant graphics at least 2 or 3% away from the edge, mostly as an aesthetic design rule.</p>
 14523: <p>There are three different things that get called "broadcast safe":</p>

<ul>
<li><strong>Colors gamut:</strong> You don't need to apply an NTSC broadcast safe filter, but you do want to make sure that your colors are all within gamut for the format you are using. If you use out of gamut colors, most of the time nothing happens. However, you run the risk of some very odd, very hard to troubleshoot problems cropping up on air.</li>
<li><strong>Title &amp; action safe:</strong> In the days of CRTs, there was a portion of the picture that would get cut off. That area varied from TV to TV and grew over time as the tube aged. Non-CRT displays don't suffer from the same issue, so the recommended safe areas are not as large as they used to be, but they still exist. Some modern displays artificially create an overscan and the bezel of some displays can block the edges even at reasonable viewing angles. Recommendations vary from 1% to 5% of the screen should be protected.</li>
<li><strong>Center cut safe:</strong> 4:3 TVs do still exist in the world. How a 4:3 picture is created from a 16:9 signal varies. Sometimes it is created with a separate air chain by the broadcaster, sometimes the broadcaster downconverts the 16:9 to 4:3, and sometimes the 16:9 feed is downconverted <em>in the viewers home</em>. It is for this last reason that it is recommended that you still keep key elements (e.g., products, people talking, offer graphics and disclaimer text) within the center cut protected area of the picture.</li>
</ul>

<p>In summary:</p>

<ul>
<li>Use only colors within broadcast gamut.</li>
<li>Don't push important elements right to the edge of the screen.</li>
<li>Protect important visuals within the center cut safe area.</li>
</ul>
