Recently, there has been a bit of wrangling and hoopla over both of the new blue laser high definition optical formats, specifically on just how the new copy protection would be implemented on each spec. Both HD-DVD and Blu-ray are going to utilize AACS, therefore, it is set in stone that they both will offer will offer something known as "managed copies". However, there are some subtle differences and maybe even some questions left unanswered from the Blu-ray camp at least. So there is quite a bit of posturing going on and there is a lot at stake.
Microsofts Bill Gates let it be known that he was not about to back a technology that was "anti-consumer" and would not work well on a PC. No, by golly, he was going to throw his support to the HD-DVD camp and to heck with Blu-ray. Say what? Some chuckle and say "Oh, well this is just because Microsoft will never support a Sony product." But, we have to wonder, is it that simple?
Around the same time period, the PC peddling giant HP, coincidentally came out with a press release "asking" the Blu-ray Disc Association to include
mandatory Managed Copy and iHD as part of
its format specification. HP felt that Managed Copy and iHD would best address the fundamental technical needs of the PC and the digitally connected home. Otherwise, they were going to pull support for Blu-ray. They got part of their wish, the managed copy, but not iHD. In addition, Blu-ray leaves it up to the studios on a disc-by-disc basis, to add managed copy or not.
What is iHD? iHD, would be a way to provide consumers with enhanced content, navigation interactivity and functionality for these next gen film discs. You can use it to make legitimate copies or even to send your films about the house on a home network. It has been noted publicly (for instance the above linked press release) that Microsoft is poised to provide iHD support in the Windows Vista operating system. Surprise!
So now we begin to see a kink in the HP Microsoft business plan. Suddenly, we might think it is not an issue of anti consumer, it's an issue of control. Its an obstacle for a grand plan. And Vista is set to hit the streets in 2006, what a mess! But hey, iHD sounds pretty cool! I mean, at least I can make copies and send them flying around the house right? What's wrong with that?
Warning, this snippet from an excellent article at ArsTechnica may give your blood pressure a spike. Bear in mind, that it was written in September and Blu-ray does now support voluntary Managed Copy. But, I think you will see the other issue that comes to the surface, one that should make us very wary of the future and motivated to stay on top of this process.
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Furthermore, HD DVD makes Managed Copy mandatory: all content provided on HD DVD must give users the option of making at least one copy. Jordi Ribas, director of technical strategy for the Windows Digital Media Division, told me that while the feature is mandatory, the studios will have the option of charging for it. Ribas hopes that studios will allow at least a single copy "for free," but it may be market conditions that ultimately determine the cost of such features. The take-away, at least, is that studios have to offer something, and AACS is structured in such a way that the studios can tap into it to offer users more options. |
You hear that? Microsofts Jordi hopes that the single copy will be free! Nothing is free. Maybe they wont charge for a single copy over the Internet with a key, but maybe the movie will be 25 dollars instead of 20 when I buy it. You know, the "deluxe version" complete with bloopers, alternate endings, trailers and "streaming capability" go ahead, rip it to your hard drive...once. Did we mention this functionality was free!
In the United States, when I was a young lad, I was always told by my superiors in the business world, that "The customer is always right". To some extent, this is true even today, depending on the business. But in the digital content business, it seems the motto is now "The customer has no rights."
It's up to us as consumers to use a free market, or as Jordi says in the above quote, create "market conditions" to help to decide our fate. We were given the right of backup for personal use with the Betamax decision, only to have it trumped by big business and the DMCA or Digital Millennium Copyright Act, that makes it a crime to circumvent any DRM (anti-piracy measures) to produce a copy of our own purchases. So, in 1998 the foundation was laid, to support a new paradigm for our future, which is to provide the means to charge us again, for an exact digital copy, of what we already own! It is time to draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough.
Source: ArsTechnica
