WTV to MOV Converter

How to Convert WTV to MOV Online

1. Upload Your WTV File: Drag and drop, or click "+ Add Files" to select the recordings Windows Media Center wrote to your Recorded TV folder. Batch upload is supported, and each file processes independently so a long broadcast does not block a short one.
2. Pick a Quality Preset: Default is Very High (Recommended), which gives the cleanest re-encode for editing. Switch to Specific file size if you need to hit a delivery cap (Vimeo upload, AirDrop, Slack), or use Constant Bitrate / Variable Bitrate / Constant Quality / Constraint Quality when you want manual control over the encoder.
3. Resize and Trim (Optional): Under Video resolution, scale by Resolution Percentage, Keep original, choose Preset Resolutions (4K, 1440p, 1080p, 720p, 480p), or enter custom Width / Height with aspect ratio locked. Under Trim, leave Unchanged to keep the full recording or pick a Time Range to cut out station ID bumpers and commercial breaks before export.
4. Convert and Download: Click Convert, then download the .mov. Conversion happens on our servers — no account, no watermark, no email gate.

Why Convert WTV to MOV?

WTV is the container Windows Media Center wrote to disk when it recorded over-the-air or cable TV — it wraps MPEG-2 video (occasionally H.264 on later HD captures) plus MPEG-1 Layer II or Dolby Digital AC-3 audio, optionally with broadcast-flag DRM. Microsoft disbanded the Media Center team after Windows 7 and removed the app entirely with Windows 10's July 29, 2015 release, so anyone with an archive of .wtv files is now stuck with a format no current Microsoft OS plays natively. MOV (QuickTime), released by Apple on December 2, 1991, is the opposite problem — its file structure became the basis for the MPEG-4 Part 14 (MP4) standard via ISO/IEC 14496-12, and Apple's editing stack treats it as a first-class input.

• Final Cut Pro / iMovie editing — Final Cut Pro lists MOV (QuickTime) as a native container and supports H.264, Apple ProRes, Apple Intermediate Codec, DV, HDV, and Motion JPEG inside it. iMovie accepts MOV, M4V, MPEG-4, MPEG-2, and DV out of the box. WTV is not on either list, so converting is the only path to a timeline.
• Rescuing recorded broadcasts before the source bit-rots — Windows 10 stopped shipping Media Center in 2015; Windows 11 has no built-in playback. Re-wrapping into MOV (or MP4) future-proofs the recording against the next OS upgrade.
• Cutting commercials and station bumpers — the Trim panel lets you isolate the actual show before re-encoding, instead of carrying the ad breaks into your archive.
• Smaller deliverable for client review — picking a Specific file size target produces a MOV that fits inside Vimeo's 5 GB/week free upload cap or under the 100 MB attachment limit Slack's free workspaces allow.
• Cross-platform playback — macOS, iOS, and iPadOS all play MOV in QuickTime Player without third-party codecs. WTV needs a Windows install plus Media Center or a tool like VLC.

WTV vs MOV — Format Comparison

Picking a Quality Preset

Frequently Asked Questions

My WTV file has DRM — will the converter still work?

If the broadcast was flagged with CGMS-A copy-protection (most premium cable channels, some HBO and Showtime recordings), the file is encrypted to the original PC's TPM/machine key and no third-party tool — online or desktop — can decode it. Free-to-air ATSC recordings and unencrypted cable channels convert fine. The test: if Windows Media Player or VLC plays the file on a different computer than the one that recorded it, it's not DRM-protected.

Why is the converted MOV larger than my WTV?

WTV stores MPEG-2 broadcast streams at roughly the bitrate the station transmitted — typically 12-19 Mbps for ATSC HD. Re-encoding to H.264 inside MOV usually shrinks it (H.264 is roughly 2x more efficient than MPEG-2). If your output is larger, you likely picked Constant Quality at a very high setting or left a Specific file size target above the source size; switch to Very High or VBR and the file will drop.

Should I convert to MOV or MP4 for Final Cut Pro?

Either works — MOV and MP4 share the same ISO base media file format (ISO/IEC 14496-12), so Final Cut treats them almost identically when the codec inside is H.264. Pick MOV if you plan to round-trip through QuickTime Player, FCP, or Compressor, since QuickTime tooling expects the .mov extension. Pick MP4 if you want a broader-compatibility container for upload to YouTube, Vimeo, or social platforms.

Does converting preserve the show's metadata (title, channel, air date)?

No. Windows Media Center stored EPG metadata (program guide title, episode, original air date) inside the WTV container as separate atoms. Standard MOV doesn't have equivalent slots, so this data is dropped during re-encode. If you need to keep it, copy the metadata out of the WTV first with wtvinfo or a Media Center export before converting.

What about closed captions from the original broadcast?

ATSC closed captions (CEA-608/708) are carried in the MPEG-2 stream as user data. They are not transferred during a basic re-encode because the H.264 encoder doesn't know to look for them. If captions matter, you'll need a separate workflow that demuxes the captions to SRT first, then muxes them back into the MOV.

Will the output play on my iPhone or iPad?

Yes — iPhones (iOS 12 and later) play H.264 MOV in the Photos app, Files app, and any video viewer. The Very High preset produces an H.264 baseline/main profile that AirDrops cleanly. For Final Cut Pro for iPad, MOV is the recommended import container.

Can I convert a 2-hour WTV recording, or is there a length limit?

Length is not capped — duration is just a function of file size and upload bandwidth, as conversion runs on our servers. A 2-hour HD broadcast WTV is typically 10-20 GB; the practical limit is upload speed and connection stability. For very long captures, use the Trim panel to split into hour-long chunks, or convert to MKV first if you want a more efficient intermediate container.

What if I want a different output — AVI for an older editor, or just to compress the MOV later?

Use WTV to AVI for Premiere Pro CS3 or earlier and other legacy NLEs that prefer the AVI container. If the converted MOV ends up larger than you want for delivery, run it through Compress MOV afterwards to dial in a target file size without re-running the WTV decode.

Why does my output look slightly softer than the original broadcast?

MPEG-2 broadcast streams use chroma subsampling at 4:2:0 already, but they are usually I-frame heavy at high bitrates (12-19 Mbps). Re-encoding to H.264 VBR at a lower bitrate trades some chroma sharpness for file-size savings. To minimize the loss, pick Very High or Constant Quality with a high quality setting — these targets produce the largest, cleanest re-encode.