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Some 'Next-Gen' DVDs May Not Work With Vista
schnikies79 wrote to mention an article on the Times Online site, where they report that a 'substantial number' of Vista PCs will be unable to play HD-DVDs or Blu-ray discs, as a result of DRM requirements made by the operating system. From the article: "Dave Marsh, the lead program manager for video at Microsoft, said that if the PC used a digital connection to link with the monitor or television, then it would require the highest level of content protection, known as HDCP, to play the discs. If it did not have such protection, Vista would shut down the signal, he said."
Some 'Next-Gen' DVDs May Not Work With Vista
EMI Considers Abandoning DRM on CDs
No Ceasefire in DVD Format Battle
Today is a good day for DRM to die...
No, please don't. Making stupid DRM'd technologies acceptable to the average end user by hacking them really does more harm than good.
I'm actually hoping the technology advances to the point where it can enforce the letter of the license *EXACTLY* so people wake up to how oppressive the various license agreements (both the Windows one and the ones for the music and movie media) are.
If people had any idea how bad it was (can't show a DVD on a college dorm shared TV because that's a public display that the DVD doesn't give you a license for ; can't install windows on VMs for testing without paying more ; etc) - they'd object much more strongly.
The current situation where it's easy to break Windows and DVD licenses just advantages unethical companies and people and hurts the ones that attempt to be law abiding.
Mind-boggling.
I have to admit that even though Peter Gutmann is a respected computer security expert while I know virtually nothing about Vista, I was inclined to think his analysis just had to be wrong. He had to be misunderstanding something, or positing a hypothetical situation that would never arise with real-world commercial gear, or something like that. Microsoft simply couldn't be that stupid.
Now it turns out that he's right, and that presumably-unintended but not-unforeseeable consequences of Vista's DRM scheme will prevent it from being used in the one way you'd think Microsoft would most want it to be used. It is precisely the enthusiastic with money to devote to their video hobby who are likely to be the early adopters of PCs as home video platforms.
Microsoft is coming perilously close to providing the platform that secures protected perfectly content by preventing _anyone_ from viewing it.
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
Could someone please elaborate for me a Lunix/Unix/OSX system which we can get currently which would play an HD-DVD disc with the HDCP flag up without requiring HDCP compliant DRM in place within the OS?
It seems MS is being bashed for following the requirements being set forth by the media producers. Whereas a number of MS practices may be less than honorable, in this case from what I see they are simply holding to the requirements of the format standard.
All in all I think the media companies like Sony have been given enough DRM rope and are within a year or two of effectively fashioning themselves a noose from it, but that's just MHO on the topic.
I'm a fiscal conservative, it's a pity we don't have a political party anymore
Yeah, but it's not just monitors. Like the parent said, every piece of equipment that the data passes through must be HDCP-enabled, right? And this situation isn't entirely Microsoft's fault, now is it? The OS claims support for HDCP, so it must fully support the standard.
What people are whining and complaining about is that Microsoft is actually following a standard. These same people are the ones that complain when Microsoft doesn't follow other standards like CSS2. It's just that the standard they are following happens to be one that implements DRM, and now they're going on about how "Oh, gee, they fully-implemented the standard!"
*sigh*
Here's the answer: don't buy HD-DVDs and BDs that require HDCP. Duh. Vote with your feet. If enough people really put their money where their mouth is (as opposed to what they normally do, which is just paying lip-service), and truly advocated that others do the same, it will make a difference. Sadly, most people are so weak in their convictions that when their favorite movie comes out requiring HDCP, they will just buy it no matter what.
My blog
This is slashdot, and still we aren't really sure how HDCP works. I fear the worst for Joe Blow consumer.
"Flee at once, all is discovered."
Yes, but the problem appears to be that Vista won't output HD over a digital link regardless of whether HDCP is turned on or not. Further Sony has stated that they are NOT intending on releasing HDCP enabled discs until at least 2010. In other words, MS did indeed screw up. Vista should allow the signal to go out over a digital connection unless the HDCP flag is set on the media itself.
Not good.
No Comment.
New 1080p HD TV: $2,500
Vista OS Upgrade: $150
Card and cable for streaming HD A/V to TV: $180
Internal Blueray Drive: $900
Blueray movie: $40
Not being able to view legally purchased media on legally purchased hardware because of arbitrary content restrictions: $3770 apparently.
All prices approximate but realistic. Thanks Hollywood and Microsoft, obviously the consumer is king!
-- I'm not a pessimist, I'm a realist. It's not my fault that life sucks so much. --
This is one of a long list of reasons that I won't be upgrading to Vista or HD-DVD/BluRay in the forseeable future. The sad thing for all of the companies involved is that I usually am an early adopter of technology.
I was one of the first people I knew to own a Tivo, DVD-player and an HD set (okay, I didn't own the set but I pressured my dad into buying one and he was really happy with it). I bought a copy of XP pretty much as soon as it was available. Last count, I owned nearly 500 DVDs.
And that's about as far as my relationship with these companies go. I--a legitimate, paying customer--am unwilling to be inconvenienced one single second, or pay a single extra dollar, to be treated like a criminal. I simply won't do it. So I'll continue buying DVDs until they stop manufacturing them, hopefully by which point this whole fiasco will have blown over.
I currently have no clever signature witicism to add here.
Ok..let me spell out my point AC since you are going to focus on a link...
At some point, Linux will be able to play these discs because the DRM will be cracked. When that day comes, I will not have the restrictions at the OS level that you will. Until that day comes, I won't be purchasing either of these restrictive technologies. Like I said, enjoy your Vista.
"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons."
- Popular Mechanics, 1949
"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."
- Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943
"640K ought to be enough for anybody."
-Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, 1981
"Anyways, there is no way to play HD-DVD or Blu-Ray disks in Linux." Ever. =P
-AC Slashdot, 01/09/07
You do know that Apple and OSX will have exact same DRM requirements as Vista to play HD-DVD/B-R content that have the HDCP flag enabled. That this is a requirement in this particular media standard that any player (including standalone non-computer based players) will need to follow to be able to play it (outside of a cracked version for Linux maybe). So following your logic, OSX is collapsing as well, or will not be able to play these discs at all.
exactly. In 2 years, when these players are in a not-insignificant number of homes. A reasonably popular release will have that content bit "accidentally" turned on. Depending upon the uproar over that "accident", the studios will decide when to fully impliment it.
11 was a racehorse
12 was 12
1111 Race
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