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When Was the First Commercial Color Televison Broadcast?

The first commercial television licenses were issued to two New York TV stations WCBW (later WCBS) and WNBT (later WNBC) on July 1, 1941.

Before 1951, all TV broadcasts were done in black and white. CBS and RCA began to develop the technology to broadcast commercial TV in color. The race was on.

  1. Licensed Issued

    • The first license to broadcast in color was issued to CBS by the Federal Communications Commission on Oct. 11, 1950. The license was to go into effect on Nov. 3.

    Lawsuit

    • To stop CBS from using the license, RCA filed a lawsuit, claiming CBS color technology (Reference 1) was inadequate. On Nov. 15, 1950, the courts ruled in RCA's favor, and a restraining order was issued.

    CBS Wins

    • The restraining order did not stop CBS. The court upheld its right to broadcast its TV transmission in color. RCA appealed to the Supreme Court, but on May 28, 1951, the Supreme affirmed the lower court ruling. CBS became the first TV network to broadcast in color the "Arthur Godfrey Show' on June 26, 1951.

    Baseball and Football

    • New York's WCBS became the first local station to broadcast in color--a baseball game between the Boston Braves and the Brooklyn Dodgers--on Aug. 11, 1951. The first color broadcast of the NFL was on the CBS affiliate in Philadelphia on Sept. 29, 1951.

    Chicago

    • In 1956, Chicago TV station WBNQ (NBC owned) became the first TV station to broadcast totally in color.

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