A review with 34 refs. covering non-equil. plasmas generated at 1 atm. by gliding discharges (GD) and dielec. barrier discharges (DBD) used to convert CH4 into C2H2 and C2H6 (increased selectivity of a com. Cu/Zn/Al2O3 catalyst), resp., and a new GD reactor with a spouted Al2O3 bed developed to raise the voltage and decrease the current, to increase the selectivity toward C2H2 and to suppress the formation of soot.