1990s


1991

Apple's QuickTime software is presented in public, the first capable of playing videos on a PC.

1992

Microsoft's Video for Windows comes onto the market, in competition with QuickTime, linked to the AVI (Audio Video Interleave) format.

The MPEG-1 standard is definitively approved for the coding of digital video and audio. MPEG-1 is the standard used by the Video CD format, which would be very popular in the transmission of low-quality video.

1995

The DV (Digital Video) standard is created. Different versions are marketed, based on this standard, for both home use, such as the MiniDV, and professional use, like the DVCAM and DVCPRO formats.

ISO/IEC approves the MPEG-2 for encoding digital video.

The specifications are created for the FireWire connection (IEEE-1394) with a bandwidth of 400Mbits/s.

DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting), the body entrusted with regulating the transmission procedures of digital television, approves the DVB-S and DVB-C standards for the transmission of the digital signal of satellite and cable television, respectively.

The DVD is announced, which a few years later becomes the majority format in the sale and rental of films and audio-visual content.

1997

Sony's HDCAM appears, the high-definition Betacam Digital version.

1998

The MPEG-4 video and audio coding standard is introduced. Its applications go from the transmission of low-resolution images and sound for mobile telephones to high-definition video and multi-media objects.