Why do most TV stations broadcast in narrow screen?

Answer 1

There are currently two aspect ratios used in television broadcasting. 4 : 3 is the early standard and has been around for decades. 16 : 9 is the widescreen format and is far more recent. The UK and Germany have adopted 16 : 9 as a standard over the past decade and virtually all program content is produced as widescreen. Other European countries are following suit.

North America, on the other hand, has not moved to widescreen for standard definition television. Almost all SD content is produced in the 4 : 3 aspect ratio.

High definition is exclusively widescreen. Any HD broadcast will be in 16 : 9 format. In Europe, this does not demand any change in the screen format because of the move to widescreen some years ago. North America is now seeing the change in television screen formats to accomodate HD but most programs are still in SD - leaving a gap at the sides of the image when viewed on an HD screen.

As more programs are broadcast in HD, so the problem will fade away but it is safe to say that the format differences will be evident for some years to come.