PAL, or Phase Alternating Line, is a color encoding system for analog television developed in Germany in the early 1960s. It was designed to address color transmission issues found in earlier systems like NTSC. PAL alternates the phase of the color signal with each line, reducing color errors and improving picture stability. Widely used across Europe, Asia, Africa, and parts of South America, PAL became the standard for analog broadcast television in many countries. Although digital broadcasting has largely replaced analog systems, understanding PAL remains relevant for legacy equipment, media archiving, and certain cybersecurity scenarios involving video surveillance or the analysis of analog video signals.