Columbia Pictures Videocassette Services

List of Customers

 * Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment (1979-1981)

How to Tell

 * Several Columbia Pictures Videocassete Services-duplicated tapes from 1979 to 1981 have the color bars test pattern with the 1000 hz looping beep-tone at the end of the tape. On some tapes printed very early during 1979, there is a black screen with the text, "This is a TEST!" and a similar looping beep-tone in either 998 hz or 1001 hz.
 * On some early tapes, "910" is etched somewhere on the tape. It could also be a year-month code, in this case, October 1979.

Fun Facts

 * Following the acquisition of a minor stake in Bell & Howell Video Systems by Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures, this arm, owned by the latter, was merged with it, to become Bell & Howell/Columbia Pictures/Paramount Video Services in 1981.