BT.656 defined the parallel and serial interfaces for transmitting
4:2:2 YCbCr digital video between equipment in studio
and pro-video applications. Active video resolutions are
either 720 x 486 (525/60 video systems) or 720 x 576
(625/50 video systems).
The BT.656 parallel interface uses 8 or 10 bits of multiplexed
YCbCr data and a 27MHz clock (ECL levels are used for the
data and clock signals). Instead of the conventional video
timing signals (HSYNC, VSYNC, and BLANK) also being
transmitted, BT.656 uses unique timing codes embedded
within the video stream. This reduces the number of wires
(and IC pins) required for a BT.656 video interface.