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New Copy Protection to Make Playing DVDs on a PC Difficult

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Wed Oct 11, 2006 03:18 PM
from the thankfully-there-are-alternatives-to-windows dept.
The Cowardly Pirate writes "ZDNet's Hardware 2.0 blog is reporting that new copy-protection software for DVD publishers from a company called ProtectDisc not only makes it difficult to rip movies that you've purchased but also prevents discs from playing in a Windows PC at all. From the article: 'Protect DVD-Video is the brainchild of a company called ProtectDisc. Part of the copy-protection mechanism is a non-standard UDF (Universal Disc Format) file system which results in the IFO file on the DVD (this is the file responsible for storing information on chapters, subtitles and audio tracks) appearing to the PC as being zero bytes long.'"
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  • DVD Jon (Score:5, Funny)

    by doctor_nation (924358) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:19PM (#16398883)
    Countdown to DVD Jon hack 3..2..1..
  • Message to DVD industry: Byte Me! (Score:5, Interesting)

    by yagu (721525) * <yayagu AT gmail DOT com> on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:19PM (#16398885)
    (Last Journal: Wednesday August 15, @03:36PM)

    Just the other night we had more DVDs to watch than TVs and players. Our daughter wanted to watch her Smallville (purchased), and we were watching one of our circulating Blockbuster "mailer" DVDs.

    She was delighted when I showed her how to watch her DVD on the upstairs computer -- she hadn't known that was possible. Problem solved, everybody happy.

    But, now this? What the hey? So now potentially what she presumably knows about watching on an alternative device could not work, and she wouldn't know why -- yes, the article mentions the latest new "tool" that "effortlessly" bypasses the security, but again, What the Hey? She isn't going to know about that tool, or how to use it, and I'm about as sick and tired as I can be of setting up the workarounds for restrictions that shouldn't even exist.

    Interestingly, the article mentions (emphasis mine):

    As usual, I don't have a problem with anyone protecting their intellectual property and making sure that they are paid fairly for their work, but I am dismayed when, time after time, they seem to blur the line between fair use and piracy

    I only almost agree with that -- "they" in this case seem to be blurring the line between use-use and piracy. Each day I toss a coin to decide who annoys me more -- media "providers" or spammers. It's a close call.

    I used to wonder whether the DVD industry would totally shoot itself in the foot with the HD vs. BluRay DVD wars coupled with intrusive DRM, sending potential customers away in droves. If this new protection technology is for existing DVDs (it's not clear from the article), they could send existing DVD customers away in droves. I no longer about the sanity of the industry -- I worry about the sanity of artists allowing contracts for their "art" to be wrapped in technology like this, I wonder why they allow it.

    (Interesting (and I think important) aside: I recently updated the firmware on my Creative Vision:M mp3 player, a player I've absolutely loved for its features, ergonomics, screen quality, you name it, there was hardly a thing about it I could find fault with. As the new firmware was installing I browsed the release notes... looking for the standard blah blah blah on what's fixed, what's new. The very last line of the notes said (paraphrasing), This firmware upgrade will disable your FM recording capability(!). WTF? It was too late for me to stop the upgrade -- sure enough, I now have a Creative Vision:M sans FM recording capability, (a feature which I was quite fond of)! Creative doesn't say whether it's RIAA induced, I have no idea why they did this... but if it IS more DRM crap, what a crock!)

    (Other aside: I love that the ad for the slashdot page for the "read more" for me was an HD-DVD ad...)

  • Ooh! More great news! (Score:5, Informative)

    by KingSkippus (799657) * on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:20PM (#16398891)
    (http://skippus.blogspot.com/ | Last Journal: Sunday June 19 2005, @07:25AM)

    I love reading stuff like this. I hope that they lock DVDs down so tight that no one can even play them on their regular players. Then, when the next blockbuster movie sell a grand total of four DVDs, maybe the movie and television studios will finally realize how much money this is costing them.

    And seriously, can I see a quick show of hands of everyone who thinks that this will keep people from copying DVDs?...

    Yeah, that's what I thought, and neither do I.

    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by xantho (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:24PM
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by A beautiful mind (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM
      • TGFH (Thank God For HandBrake) (Score:5, Informative)

        by Kadin2048 (468275) <slashdot@kadin.xoxy@net> on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:51PM (#16399527)
        (http://kadin.sdf-us.org/ | Last Journal: Tuesday October 16, @01:46PM)
        Everyone in between is better off using a pirated copy, because it is just better.

        Agreed. I hardly even watch movies straight from DVD anymore. Even if I'm just going to watch it once, I just run them through HandBrake first. That way I don't have to deal with crappily designed menus, FBI warnings, and mandatory-view advertisements. (Because yes, Virginia, a "preview" is just an advertisement for another movie.)

        I've told more than one other person about HandBrake and now they do the same thing. I wouldn't call it quite "Grandma friendly" yet (although the stripped-down iPod version is) but it's pretty close. If the person you're instructing knows the difference between a Phillips screw and a Torx, they can probably deal with HandBrake.
        [ Parent ]
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! (Score:5, Insightful)

      by jimicus (737525) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:34PM (#16399185)
      (http://www.whitepost.org.uk/)
      Then, when the next blockbuster movie sell a grand total of four DVDs, maybe the movie and television studios will finally realize how much money this is costing them.

      More likely they'll blame piracy.
      [ Parent ]
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by John Hasler (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:45PM
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! by kfg (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:02PM
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! (Score:4, Interesting)

        by jridley (9305) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:24PM (#16400047)
        What it will do is to keep ordinary users from PLAYING the discs on their PCs/Laptops/etc. And at the same time, it probably won't slow down anyone who's seriously copying DVDs at all.

        This will get broken just like every other measure, and the break will get incorporated into the same software people are already using to copy DVDs, and within a couple of months you won't even know there's any protection on the disc when you go to copy it.

        Another thing it will do is to force people who otherwise would not copy their DVDs to do so, so that the copies will then be playable on their PCs. I already know people who have done this when they unknowingly bought out-of-region DVDs from eBay or while on vacation. They're not pirates, they just want to watch what they bought.
        [ Parent ]
        • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! (Score:5, Interesting)

      by kent_eh (543303) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:25PM (#16400065)
      Actually, I have run into several DVDs (mostly Disney) that won't play on my set-top DVD player (says either "bad disk" or "wrong disk type"), but play fine on my computer.
      They will, however, play on my set-top after I "process" them on my computer.
      Is this what the movie industry wants?
      [ Parent ]
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! by Anonymous Coward (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:51PM
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! by Keruo (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:39PM
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! by Xiaran (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:34PM
      • Re:Ooh! More great news! (Score:4, Interesting)

        by KozmoStevnNaut (630146) <<moc.liamg> <ta> <nvetskirneh>> on Thursday October 12 2006, @05:39AM (#16405823)
        My dad bought a fancy Denon integrated DVD player and surround amplifier to get rid of all the different boxes under his TV (yeah I know. I thought it was a silly idea, too).

        It absolutely refuses to play copy-"protected" CDs. If he puts one in it will refuse to function in any way until the disk is removed again, due to function locking while the disk is loading. The kicker is that if he copies the disk on his computer (which will luckily read the "protected" CDs just fine), the Denon player accepts the copy right away, every single time.

        So the only way for him to play copy-"protected" CDs is by copying the damn things! How's that for ironic?

        I would not be surprised at all if it acted the same way with these new "protected" DVDs.
        [ Parent ]
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by bhmit1 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:28PM
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by denebian devil (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:31PM
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! About those sales... by Nom du Keyboard (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:35PM
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by funkdancer (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @10:31PM
    • Re:Ooh! More great news! by drinkypoo (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:50PM
    • 3 replies beneath your current threshold.
  • Really? (Score:5, Funny)

    by Mysteerie (972719) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:22PM (#16398909)
    (http://www.bihira.com/)
    Movies are actually meant to be watched? I thought they were collectibles!
    • Movies: the Gathering (Score:5, Funny)

      by spun (1352) <loverevolutionary.yahoo@com> on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:53PM (#16399557)
      (Last Journal: Tuesday August 07, @01:18PM)
      I can see it now...

      "I tap my 'Ghostbusters' and my 'Stripes' to power my Bill Murray's Sarcastic Comment Attack..."

      "Well, I counter with my Renee Zellweger's Pinchy Faced Squint Attack, so let's see, my Zellweger is destroyed, but your Murray takes six points of damage, and I tap my 'Showgirls' to power a Flashbulb of the Paparazzi and finish him off."

      "Damn! Your turn..."
      [ Parent ]
    • Re:Really? by noidentity (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:54PM
    • Re:Really? by RavensDark (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:20PM
  • Buy a mac? by Eyah....TIMMY (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:22PM
    • Re:Buy a mac? by Otter Escaping North (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:39PM
      • Re:Buy a mac? by John Hasler (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:47PM
        • Re:Buy a mac? by Otter Escaping North (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:55PM
          • Ultimately, we all still lose. (Score:5, Insightful)

            by Kadin2048 (468275) <slashdot@kadin.xoxy@net> on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:05PM (#16399771)
            (http://kadin.sdf-us.org/ | Last Journal: Tuesday October 16, @01:46PM)
            I (and we) will always have the cooler toys.

            We always would have had the cooler toys. People who are interested in learning about computers, will always be able to do more with them; this doesn't change whether the computer is a drum-memory beast or the latest bazillion-transistor Intel powerhouse.

            What DRM means is that the stuff that we geeks will be doing on our computers, is the stuff that the masses should be able to do ... and the stuff that we geeks ought to be doing in the absence of DRM, we'll never do at all.

            When I think of all the time that really brilliant people like DVD Jon have spent breaking DRM, it doesn't seem like some great technical achievement -- it's just a lot of effort and time that could have gone to actual development of new features, but which had to instead be spent just making something simple work the way it should have.

            DRM is like the ultimate broken-window fallacy. In fixing it you feel like you're accomplishing something, but really you're just treading water.
            [ Parent ]
        • Re:Buy a mac? by AusIV (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:31PM
      • Re:Buy a mac? by drinkypoo (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:53PM
        • Re:Buy a mac? by Farmer Tim (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @03:54AM
          • Re:Buy a mac? by drinkypoo (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @12:47PM
            • Re:Buy a mac? by Farmer Tim (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @04:30PM
      • Re:Buy a mac? (Score:5, Funny)

        by giorgiofr (887762) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:58PM (#16399657)
        Black-clad men entered my house through the windows and shot my Mac and blew my Linux servers with C4 but they did NOT find my NetBSD-enabled toaster! MWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!
        [ Parent ]
        • Re:Buy a mac? by steveo777 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:32PM
          • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
        • Re:Buy a mac? by mibus (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:48PM
    • No eventually about it by Sycraft-fu (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:54PM
    • Re:Buy a mac? by Cybrex (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:57PM
      • Re:Buy a mac? by mgabrys_sf (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:12PM
        • Re:Buy a mac? by mgabrys_sf (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @04:18AM
        • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
      • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • No "Snakes on a Plane" on a plane by rlp (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:22PM
  • Oh the joy. by jense (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:23PM
    • You must not have heard... by paranode (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:34PM
    • Re:Oh the joy. by damacus (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:36PM
      • Re:Oh the joy. by dhasenan (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:46PM
    • Re:Oh the joy. (Score:5, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:39PM (#16399285)
      The truth of the matter is, the pirates rule the ports, and if you try to remove ports altogether trade shuts down and the merchants and people are angry - the solution isn't to remove ports, but to create naval armies to fight the pirates away from the merchant vessels (being, DVD's). Or at least that's what my pirated copy of Sid Meier's Pirates taught me. But then when I pirated Pirates of the Carribean I learned instead that if you side with some of the pirates you can get rid of some other pirates. Also I learned that if a pirate falls behind, he's left behind, which explains why I'm still trying to use IRC/Torrents and it seems my fellow pirates moved on to Newgroups/Binaries. All in all though, the pirates have the better ships and are sexier, and you'll never get rid of them - so maybe just accept your losses and stop pissing off your customers so much that they prefer dealing with pirates not just because of the lower prices but because we don't fill their computers with plagued goods in the form of viral DRM softwares and anti-privacy/anti-piracy programs? If I wasn't a pirate, I would deal with them over you, and I am a pirate because you've been pissing me off for years. Soon you won't have customers at all, they'll all be pirates - and there will be panic on the high seas but also much rum drinking and dancing because - yo ho! - a pirate is a friend to a pirate when the only goods in trade are information and can verily be copied and the booty shared by all.
      [ Parent ]
      • Re:Oh the joy. by carrier lost (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:46PM
      • Re:Oh the joy. by TheSpoom (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:47PM
        • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
    • Re:Oh the joy. by walt-sjc (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:44PM
      • Re:Oh the joy. by John Hasler (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:50PM
        • Re:Oh the joy. by snuf23 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:45PM
        • Re:Oh the joy. by Simon Garlick (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:52PM
      • Re:Oh the joy. by bfree (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:47PM
  • Not a DVD (Score:5, Interesting)

    by LostCluster (625375) * on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:23PM (#16398939)
    ...mechanism is a non-standard UDF A non-standard anything on a DVD makes it not a true DVD. We've seen this tried before on CDs and the response was that they'd have to stop using the "Compact Disc" trademark because that's only for people who follow the standard.
    • Re:Not a DVD (Score:5, Funny)

      by Scutter (18425) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:30PM (#16399101)
      (Last Journal: Wednesday January 15 2003, @08:09AM)
      We've seen this tried before on CDs and the response was that they'd have to stop using the "Compact Disc" trademark because that's only for people who follow the standard.

      Yeah. That showed 'em.
      [ Parent ]
      • Re:Not a DVD by brunascle (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:40PM
      • Re:Not a DVD (Score:5, Insightful)

        by powerlord (28156) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:42PM (#16399339)
        Yeah. That showed 'em.


        Actually, yes, it did.

        Suddenly we were provided with an easy to see visual clue that the enclosed disk may not be able to be used as we expect. This helped people avoid those disks that weren't compliant with the CD standard.
        [ Parent ]
        • Re:Not a DVD by glindsey (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:42PM
          • Re:Not a DVD by Lehk228 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @08:31PM
        • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
      • Re:Not a DVD by nine-times (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:31PM
      • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
    • Re:Not a DVD by sjwest (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:42PM
    • Re:Not a DVD by sharkey (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:54PM
    • Re:Not a DVD by julesh (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:04PM
    • Re:Not a DVD by xouumalperxe (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @03:36AM
    • 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
  • Bastards (Score:5, Informative)

    by Lost+Found (844289) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:23PM (#16398953)
    What makes me angry about this isn't that I won't be able to find movies online; hell, it's usually possible to get them before they're even available from Blockbuster. What's irritating is that I'm an honest customer of the MPAA. I have a huge shelf of DVDs. I'm a DVD collector. The first time I buy a DVD that has been engineered in such a way to not play, I'm going to return it and never buy a DVD again.

    Note: This doesn't mean I'm going to stop watching movies. Do the fucking math, MPAA.
    • Re:Bastards (Score:4, Interesting)

      by DocSavage64109 (799754) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:13PM (#16399887)
      Same here. I haven't bought a single music cd for myself or for others since I last bought one that was copy-protected.
      [ Parent ]
      • Re:Bastards by ajs318 (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @06:47AM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • XBox? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Apocalypse111 (597674) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:24PM (#16398965)
    (Last Journal: Monday December 04 2006, @04:08PM)
    As I recall, the XBox operating system was based off some version of Windows (although HEAVILY modified). Also, as many (most in the /. crowd, I'd wager) know, the XBox is pretty much just a small form factor computer. I don't own a normal DVD player, I just use my XBox for this purpose. Would this mean that I would be unable to watch movies using this tech with my existing setup?
    • Re:XBox? by xantho (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:27PM
      • Re:XBox? by networkBoy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:50PM
        • Re:XBox? by Neon Spiral Injector (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:11PM
          • Re:XBox? by networkBoy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:11PM
        • Re:XBox? by Nerd4News (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:46PM
    • Re:XBox? by Gemini_25_RB (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:32PM
      • Re:XBox? by Apocalypse111 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:45PM
    • Re:XBox? by Thauma (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:33PM
      • Re:XBox? by jimicus (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:37PM
    • Re:XBox? by RexRhino (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:34PM
  • that's terrible (Score:5, Funny)

    by User 956 (568564) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:24PM (#16398975)
    (http://www.atomjax.com/)
    new copy-protection software for DVD publishers from a company called ProtectDisc not only makes it difficult to rip movies that you've purchased but also prevents discs from playing in a Windows PC at all.

    I don't know about you, but the only DVDs I watch on my computer are in DIVX format and come from sweden. GG MPAA.
    • Re:that's terrible by dangitman (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:25PM
      • oblig by snuf23 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:48PM
        • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
    • 2 replies beneath your current threshold.
  • It'll get bypassed... by Stormx2 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM
  • sounds like a challenge to me by dingDaShan (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM
  • Nothing to see here (Score:5, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM (#16398989)
    It looks like this only effects the IFO on the disc. VLC (along with many other players) can play the VOB files without using an IFO.
  • Amusing.. by ackthpt (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM
    • Re:Amusing.. by xantho (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:35PM
      • Re:Amusing.. by NormalVisual (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:49PM
    • Re:Amusing.. by AusIV (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:12PM
  • UDF? (Score:5, Funny)

    by object88 (568048) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:25PM (#16399001)
    Part of the copy-protection mechanism is a non-standard UDF (Universal Disc Format) file system...

    Not very universal if it's non-standard, now, is it?
    • Re:UDF? by geekoid (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:36PM
  • A workaround already exists (Score:5, Informative)

    by fructose (948996) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:26PM (#16399019)
    (http://www.ericksmodels.com/)

    Of course the encryption is already broken. From the article:

    SlySoft have a product called AnyDVD [slysoft.com] which works in the background to automatically remove the copy protection of a DVD movie as soon as it's inserted into the drive. The other day they released an updated version of AnyDVD which effortlessly bypasses Protect DVD-Video.
    Nice try. I'll give you a cookie.
  • Learn Dammit (Score:4, Informative)

    by COMON$ (806135) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:27PM (#16399033)
    (Last Journal: Friday June 30 2006, @10:04PM)
    When are these companies going to learn...every "protected" piece of crap they put out there gets broken. It is inevitable, Mr Anderson. When you figure out how much money the world has put into copy protection, vs how much they have actually lost to piracy...what are they really gaining?
  • Nothing to see here by Bionic_Baboon (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:27PM
  • Nonstandard format- (Score:5, Insightful)

    If it's a non-standard format, then it isn't a DVD....

  • Home Theater PCs (Score:5, Interesting)

    by uberhombre (959917) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:30PM (#16399111)
    This will lock out people that use their PCs as Media Center PCs to play DVDs, watch TV, etc., and they usually spend quite a bit of money on tvs, dvds, sound systems, so this may not play out too well.
  • Not a problem by swarsron (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:31PM
  • anydvd has already bypassed this (Score:5, Interesting)

    by schnikies79 (788746) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:31PM (#16399119)
    On 10 October 2006, SlySoft released a press release: AnyDVD beats new copy protection "Protect DVD-Video"

    With the latest release of AnyDVD, version 6.0.8.0, SlySoft has again confirmed its position as the market leader in providing video DVD decryption software. With this version it is now possible to bypass the new "Protect DVD-Video" copy protection which first appeared on the DVD "Silent Hill" (german rental version).

    Among other mechanisms, Protect DVD-Video comes up with a messed-up UDF file system, in which an IFO file appears with a zero-byte length on a regular PC. The unsurprising result is that these DVDs will refuse to run on a Windows PC with Windows Media Player, Windows Media Center Edition or all software players that are based on DirectShow (e.g. the very popular ZoomPlayer).

    "With this copy protection the film industry clearly overshot the mark", says Giancarlo Bettini, CEO at SlySoft. "The premium customer who spent a lot of money on his multimedia home cinema and who, for quality reasons, would never even consider watching anything else but an original DVD, is being slapped in the face. These customers with their shelves stuffed with rightfully aquired DVDs, can't watch their videos."

    This is incredible nonsense! Any Media Center freak will have no choice but to install AnyDVD on his PC in order to watch his original DVD." "The film industry should actually thank us for taking care of their premium customers so well. Maybe one day I'll be nominated for an Oscar", Bettini adds with a grin.

    Background info: The company ProtectDisc is being run by Volkmar Breitfeld, also managing director of ACE (FluxDVD copy protection). Remarkably enough, Volkmar Breitfeld was previously known for creating copy protection circumventing products like InstantCopy or InstantCD/DVD, before he changed fronts to selling copy protection mechanisms.
  • I've noticed an increase in protected DVDs. by Deagol (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:32PM
  • And they wonder why.. by Endo13 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:32PM
  • by Channard (693317) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:33PM (#16399161)
    After all, it only took the branching features of The Matrix to make several popular brands of DVD player come to a screeching halt until they were updated (which itself required sending the player back to the manufacturers)
  • IS this the same... by Buzz_Litebeer (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:33PM
  • A Bad Thing? by MrCrassic (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:34PM
    • Re:A Bad Thing? by businessnerd (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:55PM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • Useless by Oz0ne (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:35PM
  • by Weaselmancer (533834) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:35PM (#16399207)

    Safedisc. Or Discguard. Or Safecast. Or SecuROM. Or...

    Oh hell. Here's the list of those who have gone before. [cdmediaworld.com]

  • FUD and Security by Obscurity by hackershandbook (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:36PM
  • I'm starting to see much more value in hardware by Ynsats (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:37PM
  • Standards are so overrated by Xylaan (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:37PM
  • So what? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by CyberLord Seven (525173) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:37PM (#16399251)
    Has anyone seen the crappy DVDs that have been released in the last couple of years? I have older DVDs, The Matrix, The Day The Earth Stood Still, 2001: A Space Odyssey, that actually PLAY when I insert them into my DVD player. Recent DVDs run STOOPID advertisements for movies that have already come and gone from the theater or something else I would rather NOT WATCH! I don't see myself buying many DVDs in the future for this reason alone. Add to this the crappy movies that are being released and I've just about given up.

    On anther rant, Linux machines won't be affected by this. Even if I bought one of these disks it would only stop me from using it on my work computer, not my laptop, not any of my homebrew computers or my Mac Mini.

    So why does anyone care?

    • Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:41PM
    • Re:So what? by mikesd81 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @10:54PM
    • Re:So what? by CyberLord Seven (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:42PM
    • Re:So what? by WiseWeasel (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @09:04PM
    • 3 replies beneath your current threshold.
  • bets, anyone? by Tom (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:37PM
  • This will backfire on them by kbob88 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:40PM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • *poof* by topical_surfactant (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:40PM
  • DVD Protection by JerryLs (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:41PM
  • by tomstdenis (446163) <tomstdenisNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:41PM (#16399329)
    (http://libtom.org/)
    Is that there are people out there that think this is a good idea. It could be the greed or just misguided ideals. But the fact that there are people out there that think this is both a good idea and worth of working on is just sad.

    People rent movies because it beats watching paint dry. All this DRM stuff is doing is making wall paint more and more interesting...

    Tom
  • Filesystems (Score:5, Interesting)

    by StormReaver (59959) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:42PM (#16399341)
    "Part of the copy-protection mechanism is a non-standard UDF...file system which results in the IFO file on the DVD...appearing to the PC as being zero bytes long."

    Then how does a dedicated DVD player read the data?
    • Re:Filesystems by dhasenan (Score:3) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:07PM
      • Re:Filesystems by Teancum (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:21PM
    • Re:Filesystems by julesh (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:09PM
      • Re:Filesystems by SanityInAnarchy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:28PM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • Please see my prior post by DRAGONWEEZEL (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:43PM
  • I'm confused by jmorris42 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:44PM
  • Gone on. Use it. I dare you... by haggie (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:45PM
  • PCs always more general by jabelar (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:46PM
  • That aint gonna stop US by alexborges (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:48PM
  • More Broken Media by eno2001 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:48PM
  • Non-standard UDF - Breaks normal players? by Digital_Quartz (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:49PM
  • Same old story... by dtjohnson (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:51PM
  • Filesystem? by The MAZZTer (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:52PM
  • No brainer for me by J.R. Random (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:53PM
  • Just speed up the DVDs demise.... by rdean400 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:53PM
  • What's the difference? by orospakr (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:54PM
  • Saves me a lot of money by Flyboy Connor (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:54PM
  • How this works (Score:5, Insightful)

    This is mainly a little DVD-Video tidbit to explain how technically this works.

    For the DVD-Video spec, the actual file system being used is irrelevant and is mainly used to "boot" the disc and discover where the very first data sector is located at on the DVD disc. From then on, at least in theory, all of the navigation to the rest of the DVD media is handled internally within the DVD-Video files themselves, including the MPEG data, as the navigation within the video data is handled with the use of special navigation packets.

    So for a set-top box on your home television, the data scanners ignore the UTF file format and just march through the data according to the DVD-Video specs, not even aware that there might be a problem. Besides, these set-top boxes have just enough of a file system BIOS just to get to the "root" sector and not much more. Sometimes the "higher-end" ones will try to scan for MP3s or other kinds of media files, but that is a bonus and not required for playing the video data itself.

    As for PCs, the operating systems are obviously designed to trust in the file system to believe that what the file system is telling you is also correct. Obviously you can mess with the order of the files and make something playable only on PCs and not set-top boxes, but usually you are more worried about the set-top ones rather than some hobbiest with some DVD playback software. The PC-based DVD-Video playback software is usually designed to trust in the file system and does the file requests through normal OS-related file requests rather than doing low-level sector navigation. This is a sign of good programming, not the lack thereof.

    What is being done here is a very cheap hack that took the brains of a half-competent software engineering intern who knows just enough about the specs to get him/herself into some serious trouble and doesn't know the basics of trying to stick with known standards. Or to understand the need for redundant systems to try and protect data through multiple means of accessing the information. As has been pointed out, by doing this the file system is essentially corrupted, so normal OS file system requests will not be able to retrieve the data, unless you are accessing information on the DVD drive via individual sector requests instead (that would be the "hack" to break this "encryption" system). BTW, the "file size" of the IFO files is also recorded in the IFO file format itself as well, so "recreating" the IFO files is trivial in this situation if you can access the individual sectors.

    I certainly hope that this idiot who designed this system didn't get a patent on the subject. I will go down right now as somebody to contact if you want to break the patent to testify that this is not a patentable idea in the first place. And as has been pointed out by others, this is clearly in violation of the DVD-Video standards and as such you can't claim compatability to DVD-Video by using this system. This is not a copy protection scheme but rather a corruption of the file system, as has been pointed out, and taking on a percieved weakness in the organization of the DVD-Video format.
  • Time for action by TheWoozle (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:55PM
  • European Perspective (Score:5, Informative)

    by RAMMS+EIN (578166) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:56PM (#16399625)
    (http://inglorion.net/ | Last Journal: Thursday October 06 2005, @07:17AM)
    I live in the Netherlands, but I know the situation is the same in many other EU countries:

    Since the implementation of the EUCD, it is now against the law to bypass "effective technical measures" that restrict what can be done with a copyrighted work, even if these restrictions involves rights you would normally have under copyright law.

    At the same time, downloading copyrighted material off the 'net is explicitly allowed. The copyright holders are paid from a levy that is imposed on blank media.

    As a result of this, for me as a Linux user, it is illegal for me to watch movies from "copy-protected" DVDs that I bought and paid for, but it is legal to watch the same movies if I download them off the 'net for free.
  • Hi! by abstractrude (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:56PM
    • Re:Hi! by Ant P. (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:43PM
  • Difficult to play on any Windows PC ? by CoolCat23 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:56PM
  • No IFO file needed by NickDngr (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:56PM
  • Home entertainment systems (Score:5, Interesting)

    by slidersv (972720) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:57PM (#16399647)
    (Last Journal: Sunday January 28 2007, @08:00AM)
    I thought a lot of people watched DVD movies on their home entertainment systems - a lot of which are based on PCs (Windows Media Center/Linux). Or what about people with just big monitor?
    So now i cannot watch this new Hollywood-DVD that I'd buy on my home entertainment system?
  • Ummm by coldtone (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:57PM
    • Re:Ummm by geekoid (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:22PM
      • Re:Ummm by evil_Tak (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:08PM
  • by Dystopian Rebel (714995) * on Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:58PM (#16399659)
    (Last Journal: Sunday November 06 2005, @05:24PM)
    1.) Stop making DVDs. Distribute the crap by download only.
    2.) Put Adam Sandler in every film.

    "1" is already happening, although Mal-Wart and the rest of the retailers are not happy about it.

    "2" would be a crime against humanity.

  • Enough Already by galvanash (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:59PM
  • Use older DVD software! by madhatter256 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:00PM
  • Limits... by Swordless Samurai (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:03PM
  • StarForce passe, ProtectDisc chic. by Honest Olaf (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:03PM
  • WTF by FoXDie (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:06PM
  • Viewing, not copy, protection (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Suzumushi (907838) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:09PM (#16399821)
    This "copy protection" is really "viewing protection" since most of the tools one might use to view the DVD are rendered helpless. Whereas, the tools one would use to copy/rip the DVD are left unaffected or simply patched within a matter of hours or days.

    It used to be, back in the 80's, that you had to be careful about putting disks from people you didn't know into your computer because you might get a virus...now in the 21st century, pirates and anonymous downloads on the internet are more reliable and less risky than sticking a CD or DVD from a well known company into your computer...

  • Linux + Xine oughta work by erroneus (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:10PM
  • what is the point... by geoff lane (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:10PM
  • Resource/Data Fork? by Arvoshift (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:14PM
  • WHY did they do this? Why throw away money? by Sloppy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:15PM
  • Misdirection Away From The Real Issue (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Bones3D_mac (324952) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:17PM (#16399955)
    The more I see stuff like this, along with the recent issues brick and mortar retailers are having over the pricing difference from online movie distribution, the more I think the movie industry wants the standard DVD format to die. Without having a phyical product being placed in the hands of consumers, and forcing movie downloads to be tied specifically to a single computer/user, it makes the process of transferring the content to third parties (either by illegal file sharing or through legal after-market resale) nearly impossible for the average person.

    Just think, that $14 movie you "conveniently" downloaded from iTunes today won't be nearly as "convenient" to resell to someone else later on, as a physical DVD would be. To resell that one single movie, you'll need to literally hand your entire computer and iTunes account over to the buyer. Otherwise, your only remaining option is to delete the file and eat the loss... and all because you didn't buy a physical copy when you had the chance.

    The industry *wants* you to buy downloaded movies instead of DVDs, despite their seeming lack of support for it. As soon as the "trusted computing initiative" is in full effect, it be game over for the consumer.
  • by rollingcalf (605357) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:31PM (#16400167)
    Again, the pirated copy has more functionality and actually will play on any sufficiently powerful computer, while the legitimately purchased copy is hobbled. They're actually driving people to piracy who originally didn't plan to go that route.
  • And how long by kilodelta (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:35PM
  • Pirates once again make a superior product by d3am0n (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:39PM
  • It's ok by quizzicus (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:39PM
  • Great Idea! by glsunder (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:48PM
  • This will not affect me. by lc_overlord (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:55PM
  • Precursor to a great new security system by AlienCZAR (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:56PM
  • Bait and Switch? by Kazrael (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:59PM
  • *ahem* Use a mac then by Frobozz0 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:59PM
  • Great, more defective products by nurb432 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:03PM
  • PC? by JamesTRexx (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:05PM
  • You can't play it, but you can copy it ... by BuBu2 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:08PM
  • I'm already NOT buying DVDs by RecycledElectrons (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:20PM
  • some thoughts (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Tom (822) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:36PM (#16401013)
    (http://web.lemuria.org/)
    There are side-effects to these content "protection" schemes. Here's one, for your pleasure:

    I bought a MacBook Pro recently. It's a great machine except for one thing: The DVD drive isn't region free. What nonsense, my $3000 machine is less functional than any $30 DVD player.

    My solution is: I don't buy DVDs anymore. The absolute best movies I'll watch in the cinema, for the rest there's BitTorrent. I'm thinking about putting my DVD collection up on eBay.

    So where, I wonder, is the gain for the movie industry? I fail to see any, unless their goal is not getting their movies watched anymore (which I just think might be true, given the crap they produce).
  • Thank god for piracy! by Jugalator (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:45PM
  • Yeah, but does it work with mplayer? vlc? by beeblebrox (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @05:58PM
  • Utterly ridiculous by Ignorant Aardvark (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:00PM
  • Back to the store with you! (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Kris_J (10111) * on Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:01PM (#16401305)
    (http://www.krisjohn.net/ | Last Journal: Friday January 19 2007, @01:58AM)
    I have two DVD players; a Sony PS2, which I hardly use anymore, and an Zensonic Z500, which is an embedded linux device (you can telnet into my DVD player!). I can't imagine either could cope with this stupid idea. So the disc would just go back as faulty.

    The entertainment industry needs to realise it's the entertainment industry. I don't need to have anything to do with it, and if it makes life unpleasant, I won't.

  • You mean I now by thorkyl (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:07PM
  • Piracy (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Randseed (132501) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:20PM (#16401487)
    Oh well. I guess I'll have to keep getting my movies from Torrent sites.
  • WinDVD, et al? by fishbowl (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:24PM
  • It also skips and locks on a lot of DVD players! by MrJerryNormandinSir (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:58PM
  • Open Letter to the MPAA (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Alchemar (720449) on Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:59PM (#16401989)
    I have long ago stopped going to the movie theater on a regular basis. Not because of price, but because I was rather upset the first time I paid to see a movie and got a comercial. One of the things I paid for was to have an uniterupted movie experience. If you want to show me trailers before the movie starts, go ahead, but don't give me a standard commercial. That first commercial was for Nestle Quick. I remember the commercial, but not the movie. If I am in the store, I will now try to pick another brand, just on principle.

    Since then, I have become a collector of DVDs. I can sit at home and watch it on my own terms. If the beging has too much stuff other than trailers, I will rip it into a format that I can enjoy. Commercials and piracy notices are not part of your "creative work." That is not what I paid for, that is not what I want, and it is not what I am going to buy. If you wish to send me the DVD for free with the commercials, then like TV, I might or might not watch it if I have the time.

    If you are going to take the ability for me to watch a movie that I have paid to watch without commericals, then I will go back to books, then I can tear out or paint anything that I find offensive.

    You are trying to do business in a capitolistic society. The intent of that economic system is that people or companies that provided the products that people want at a resonable price are allowed to stay in business. Please quit trying to stretch our legal system to get around that simple fact, and please quit trying to force DRM onto people that do not want it. Provide the general people with what they want, and you will continue to have a thriving business.
  • Fixing it by hurfy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:08PM
  • DVD hardware Lockin by arthurpaliden (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:26PM
  • And the movie studios wonder... by Nom du Keyboard (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:27PM
  • UDF by Bizzeh (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:28PM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • Is that supposed to be hard? by Frodo420024 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:41PM
  • Rehashing tired techniques by AnonymousCactus (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:42PM
  • Where is computer industry? by failedlogic (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @09:00PM
  • They finaly figured it out. by nrlightfoot (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @09:24PM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • The way it works by geoff_smith82 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @09:47PM
  • Boycott by macdaddy357 (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @10:05PM
  • No big deal by demon_2k (Score:1) Thursday October 12 2006, @12:05AM
  • The harder they make it the less I watch by cute-boy (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @02:19AM
  • And what now? by suntac (Score:1) Thursday October 12 2006, @04:18AM
  • Counter-strike! by pandrijeczko (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @06:26AM
    • 1 reply beneath your current threshold.
  • I am confused by l0cust (Score:1) Thursday October 12 2006, @07:11AM
  • Nice try. by Stavr0 (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @08:53AM
  • "media center" by kevin.fowler (Score:2) Thursday October 12 2006, @09:00AM
  • dvd by KairaK (Score:1) Thursday October 12 2006, @12:52PM
  • Re:Next step by Hennell (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:27PM
    • Re:Next step by Tharkban (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @06:04PM
  • Re:How many hours do you think it will be.... by uucp2 (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:27PM
  • Re:Foot? Meet bullet. by Kamots (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:33PM
  • Re:How many hours do you think it will be.... by networkBoy (Score:2) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:34PM
  • Re:rip! by DRAGONWEEZEL (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:40PM
  • Re:Next step by kfg (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @03:51PM
  • Re:Time to by quizzicus (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @04:44PM
  • Re:All the more reason to pirate movies by e_armadillo (Score:1) Wednesday October 11 2006, @07:42PM
  • 26 replies beneath your current threshold.
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