As technology grows, media protection has also grown. With DVD and CD’s being copied and shared on the internet, the media manufacturers are required to boost their copy protection to stop the copying and distributing of their music and movies. With so much information on the internet however, does this protection really work? There are sources in which users are able to find information on bypassing the copy protection on DVD in order to copy and share movies they rent. Here is a look on copy protection and whether it really works.
Copy Protection Explained:
In the past when DVD’s and CD’s were released they were easily copied and distributed to friends and family. For some companies that created a need for protection in order to deter copying and keep their sales. This protection became known as copy protection, copy obstruction, copy prevention or copy restriction.
Copy protection uses methods such as encryption, content scrambling, and Sony ARccOS, a type of protection that places bad sectors on DVDs purposely to prevent copying. These protection measures are constantly being updated, added to, and changed.
The Problem:
If there is a will there is a way. In content copying that is always true. The major media companies have reported losses in sales due to the illegal copying and distributing of movies and music. This has sparked security measures to prevent this.
With the growing popularity of peer-to-peer networking and hundreds of torrent sites popping up on the internet, CD and DVD copying has made it easy to get the latest releases without spending a dime. New legislation is currently proposed to stop these sites from being found on search engines, helping to prevent the file sharing.
Even with protection on the media being created, there are people who develop methods of bypassing or breaking this security. There are programs available that allow you to create copies of your DVDs and CDs for backup and archiving. These programs are being used to create digital copies for free download, in turn, costing the DVD and CD manufacturers profits. Almost all of the commercial copying apps do not containt the CSS circumvention component which is what is needed to bypass this security, thus a 3rd party add-on is required. This add-on is the piece that is illegal to distribute but software providers are clever enough to get around this by not including it in their software (thus making it legal) and then providing additional information in the software when a DVD with copy protection is found by pointing you to the necessary plugin to make it work.
However, it appears that no matter what type of protection is placed on the media; hackers are able to get through it, and quite effortlessly. It may stop the common computer users that are just trying to back up their DVDs and CDs, but these illegal distributors are not deterred.
The Future:
With the use of streaming media over the internet, it is expected that DVDs and CDs will be obsolete in the future, my prediction is that physical media will still be relevant for the next 10 years. Everything we want to watch, listen to, and enjoy will be just a click away through your smart TV. Discs will only be used for file back-up and software installation.
With streaming media you will no longer need your DVD or CD players. Simply selecting the movie or music you want will buffer the stream and allow you to enjoy it in the comfort of your own home. However, there are currently methods of recording streaming media and in the future it will just be another problem that our favorite production studios will be facing.
Though it appears that copy protection stops the common computer user, it does not stop everyone. Hackers and the computer savvy are still finding ways to get past the security to illegally distribute media over the internet and make it available for free download. Even if the technology changes, these copy distributors will always find a way to get the movies and music they want for free.
Thanks to input by Musician Skylar Tate. She relies on blu- ray and DVD duplication from DVD Copycat for all her original work preservation and distribution needs.
About Rob Boirun
That future saddens me. Streaming is acceptable, but never as good as watching from something in my own house, whether a DVD, SD card or electronic file on a computer. In addition to the better picture and sound, I like the control I have to start, stop, forward, reverse. as well as the subtitles and different audio tracks. I also like being able to watch what I own how and when I want to.
The other issue here is offline viewing. Strreaming is dependent on the internet, which you cannot get everywhere, especially on a plane.
Personally, I am for no protection on anything commercial. I spend a lot of money on DVDs and CDs and want to be able to make backups easier than what I have to go through now, or rip to different formats. I also believe that piracy is a tiny issue. Very few of the many, many people I know even know what a torrent is, let alone how to get one or burn it to a disc. Any financial loss is due to crappy movies and songs, in my opinion. If they made better movies, they would get more money – look at Harry Potter.
This is my take on this. There would be a lot less “Pirating” of DVD’s and CD’s if they brought down the cost considerably. We pay way too much for our entertainment. $30 for a movie on Blu-Ray is outrageous. $15 to $19 for a CD is even worse. The CD’s & DVD discs themselves are dirt cheap to mass produce. Company’s are too greedy and don’t need to make millions upon millions of dollars at our expense. With our economy being is as bad as it is they need to make things more affordable for the average Joe. I used to go to movies and concerts regularly but no anymore! Just can’t afford it!