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Video Conversion

Convert WTV to FLV — Free Online Converter

Convert Windows TV (.wtv) to Flash Video (.flv) online for free. Fast, secure video conversion with no watermarks or registration....

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Works Everywhere

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How to Convert

1

Upload your .wtv file by dragging it into the upload area or clicking to browse.

2

Choose your output settings. The default settings work great for most files.

3

Click Convert and download your .flv file when it's ready.

About WTV to FLV Conversion

WTV (Windows TV) is the Windows Media Center DVR recording format, storing broadcast television with MPEG-2 or H.264 video, AC3 or AAC audio, and EPG metadata within an NTFS-like container structure. Windows Media Center recorded TV shows, movies, and live events from cable, satellite, and over-the-air sources from 2007 through its discontinuation in Windows 10. FLV (Flash Video) is Adobe's streaming video container, historically the dominant format for web video delivery through Flash Player.

Both WTV and FLV are legacy formats tied to discontinued platforms — Windows Media Center and Adobe Flash Player respectively. However, FLV remains relevant for certain legacy streaming systems, content management platforms, and archival workflows that were built around Flash-based video infrastructure.

Why Convert WTV to FLV?

Converting WTV to FLV targets specific legacy scenarios — content management systems built on Flash video infrastructure, older streaming servers that only accept FLV input, and archival workflows standardized on FLV. While FLV is not recommended for new projects (Flash Player reached end-of-life in December 2020), existing systems may require this format.

For users with WTV recordings that need to be uploaded to legacy video platforms or integrated into Flash-based CMS systems that have not been migrated, WTV-to-FLV conversion provides the necessary format compatibility. FLV files with H.264/AAC codecs also play in VLC and other modern players.

Common Use Cases

  • Uploading WTV TV recordings to legacy content management systems that require FLV input format
  • Preparing recorded TV content for legacy streaming servers built on Flash-era video infrastructure
  • Converting Windows Media Center archives for integration with FLV-based institutional video platforms
  • Creating FLV versions of TV recordings for compatibility with older video processing pipelines
  • Archiving WTV recordings in FLV for systems that already store historical content in Flash Video format

How It Works

FFmpeg demuxes the WTV container and re-encodes the content into the FLV container. Video is encoded as H.264 (Sorenson Spark or VP6 for older FLV compatibility) and audio as AAC or MP3. For H.264/AAC in FLV, the flvtag metadata is set with onMetaData for proper seeking. Interlaced WTV sources (1080i, 480i) are deinterlaced with yadif before encoding. EPG metadata is discarded as FLV has limited metadata support (onMetaData event only).

Quality & Performance

At equivalent bitrates, FLV with H.264/AAC produces quality comparable to the WTV source. Standard definition WTV recordings (480i MPEG-2, 3-8 Mbps) convert well to FLV at 1-3 Mbps. HD recordings (720p/1080i, 8-19 Mbps) can be preserved at 4-8 Mbps in FLV. File sizes range from 1-8 GB per hour in WTV and compress to 0.5-3 GB in FLV depending on quality settings. Interlaced content should be deinterlaced for web-style progressive delivery.

FFMPEG EngineModerateMinimal Quality Loss

Device Compatibility

DeviceWTVFLV
Windows PCPartialPartial
macOSPartialPartial
iPhone/iPadPartialPartial
AndroidPartialPartial
LinuxPartialPartial
Web BrowserNoNo

Recommended Settings by Platform

YouTube

Resolution: 1920x1080

Bitrate: 8-12 Mbps

H.264 recommended for fast processing

Instagram

Resolution: 1080x1080

Bitrate: 3.5 Mbps

Square or 9:16 for Reels

TikTok

Resolution: 1080x1920

Bitrate: 4 Mbps

9:16 vertical, under 60s ideal

Twitter/X

Resolution: 1280x720

Bitrate: 5 Mbps

Under 140s, 512MB max

WhatsApp

Resolution: 960x540

Bitrate: 2 Mbps

16MB limit for standard, 64MB for document

Discord

Resolution: 1280x720

Bitrate: 4 Mbps

8MB free, 50MB Nitro

Tips for Best Results

  • 1Use H.264 video and AAC audio codecs in FLV for the best quality and broadest modern player support
  • 2Deinterlace 1080i and 480i WTV sources since FLV is typically served for progressive web playback
  • 3Inject flvtag onMetaData for proper seeking support in legacy Flash players and streaming servers
  • 4Prefer MP4 over FLV unless a specific legacy system requires Flash Video format — MP4 is strictly superior for modern use
  • 5Trim commercial breaks from WTV recordings before converting to avoid uploading unnecessary content to your CMS

WTV to FLV conversion serves legacy streaming and CMS infrastructure that requires Flash Video format, delivering Windows Media Center TV recordings in a format compatible with older web video systems.

Frequently Asked Questions

FLV with H.264/AAC codec plays fine in VLC, FFplay, and most modern players. It is not recommended for new projects but remains functional for legacy system compatibility.
Yes. FLV with H.264 supports up to 1080p resolution. HD WTV recordings can be converted at full resolution with appropriate bitrates.
FLV supports basic onMetaData (duration, dimensions, bitrate) but not rich EPG data. Program title, channel, and description from WTV are lost.
Use H.264 for quality and modern player compatibility. VP6 is only needed for extremely old Flash Player versions (pre-9.0.115) which are effectively extinct.
MP4 is superior in every modern context — better player support, smaller files, better streaming. Use FLV only when a specific legacy system requires it.

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