The caption reads: TAPE SERVICES- Reeves Studio in New York uses RCA Color TV Tape Recorders in its elaborately equipped tape plant. Reeves is also equipped with RCA Color Camera and Color TV film System to put inserts into Color Tape.
Because an RCA competitor, Ampex Corporation, had a registered trademark on the name "Video Tape," RCA called their system "TV Tape" and "Television Tape" in print advertising such as the this and on the machines themselves. The two companies were the only ones who designed and manufactured 2" quadruplex video recorders. Interestingly, RCA routinely used the word "videotape" in articles about their "TV Tape" recorders in the "Broadcast News" magazine. In the late 1950's, RCA and Ampex agreed on compatibility standards so that tapes were interchangeable between the brands. Ampex lost the battle to retain the rights to the name "Video Tape" and RCA and eventually other manufacturers used "videotape" at will.
A little known fact not publicized by RCA is that early NBC color recordings (1958 and early 1959) were recorded on Ampex VR 1000 monochrome VTR's modified with RCA Labs-designed color circuits. Early in 1959 the two companies compromised on a different color recording format and the early "RCA Labs" color tapes were obsolete and could only be played on a very few of the Ampex-RCA Labs VTR's. RCA sold color VTR's before Ampex did by offering a color upgrade kit for their TRT-1B VTR (as seen in the ad above).
Today neither RCA or Ampex makes equipment for broadcast even though they were THE dominant players in the 1950's-70's.
