When movie studios wanted to control the time and place of video release around the world, they came up with the region codes for the world. This was because their theater releases are not simultaneous throughout the world. The movie studios also sell "rights to distribuite" to various foreign distributors for their movies and would like to ensure the market is exclusive for a certain period of time. The easy availability of movies on DVDs along with their high quality were major reasons the DVD and DVD player coding was considered essential. This way it was possible to ensure that the DVD players in one particular region would not be able to play back discs from another country. The whole world has been divided into six area codes, with Region 1 being U.S., Canada, and U.S. Territories, Region 2 having Europe, South Africa, Japan and theMiddle East. Greece is also part of this region. Region 3 composes Southeast Asia and East Asia, while Region 4 has Australia, Central America, South America and Mexico. Region 5 encompasses Eastern Europe, India, North Korea, and Africa, while Region 6 has China. DVD Standards in Greece In Greece (Region 2), the DVDs and DVD players sold locally would have the code "two" or number "2" on them. The region code is usually marked on the back of the individual DVD packages as a regional coding logo of a globe with the region number superimposed over it. Or, it can also be specifically spelled out, as in Region 2," meaning that the disc will play only in the Region 2 DVD players and not any other region player. Greece has the PAL standard for DVDs and televisions manufactured locally. The PAL (Phase Alternating Line) standard was released during the 1960s and was put into affect in most of the European countries. The PAL standard uses a more broad channel bandwidth than NTSC, allowing for better quality of picture. PAL runs with 625 lines/frame. If a DVD player from another region, formatted in NTSC mode, was to be used with a PAL format disc, it would not play back, since the PAL and NTSC formats are mutually incompatible. DVD Compatibility Made Possible for Greece and Other Regions The regionfree DVD players are designed to play any DVD irrespective of its region code. The codefree DVD players were also equipped to convert the NTSC to PAL and PAL to NTSC formats for incompatible DVDs. The DVD players are modified with a chip set to override the code restriction, or else it is designed to be able to switch region codes to match that of the DVDs. The PAL and NTSC standards on the DVD player can be switched with a mere flick of the remote to the required mode. Voltage Barriers for Greece and other Countries In Greece, the electric current is supplied at 220 volts AC and at 50 Hz. frequency. If a DVD player from Region 1, for example the U.S., having a 110 volt specification had to be used in Greece, it would get damaged by the voltage surge. However, the new age region free DVD players are equipped to handle these voltage disparirtes by an in-built dual voltage system. The region coded DVD players are available in the electronic shops and supermarkets in Greece, but the players might have to be specially ordered. The Internet provides a wide range of Web sites that offer attractive price ranges and a whole variety of features to choose from. There are several leading brands in the markets of Greece, that sell both region-coded and region free DVD players. The PAL only and PAL NTSC standard DVD players are also available in well known brands like Toshiba, Pioneer, Samsung, Philips, Denon, and many others. The pricing for these DVD players varies widely between $80 to $800, based on the type of features available, brands, and utility. With a regionfree DVD player, travelers can now watch their favorite movies while vacationing in Greece or any country around the world! |
