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One of the major issues with the current packaged media formats is copy protection. Home media, commercial applications, parts catalogs, and corporate presentations all questioned the actual reliability of current copy protection encryption. With Blu-ray declared as the tangible media of the next generation it is important to examine the merits of its copy protection capabilities.

Blu-ray copy protection uses 3 major layers of copy protection:

1.   Advanced Access Content System (AACS). AACS is similar to CSS, which was used with DVD, and works like a secret handshake between the disc and the player. The major benefit is that the “handshakes” are renewable and transparent to the honest media user. It has been publicized that this technology has been hacked, but the renewability of this scheme makes it difficult to compromise it completely.

2.    BD+. This technology works like a virtual machine that monitors the system to detect modification or “modding”. “Modding” evolved out of the gaming industry as systems were easily modified to play pirated games. BD+ keeps a memory of the hosting environment and can detect and render a system useless until normal functioning is restored.

3.   BD ROM Mark. A licensed replicator of the media will be required to use a unique watermark on the disc. The Blu-ray player will look for that watermark before playing the disc.

These three layers of control will hopefully manage the amount of piracy in the industry and allow content providers to feel confident that their distribution is contained. Content security is important to entertainment content, but also to those looking to contain their brand and disallow manipulation and unauthorized use. The 3 layers of copy protection used by Blu-ray aim to protect those interests.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13845_3-10285229-58.html

1GB Doesn’t Necessarily Mean 1GB

Universal Serial Bus?

Yep. That is what USB stands for. USB sticks have quickly evolved into an effective way to distribute information and promote your products and services.

USB sticks have many names. Here are all of the names that I have found:

1. Thumb Drive
2. Jump Drive
3. Memory Stick
4. Jump Stick
5. Flash Stick
6. Memory Key

Please comment below with more names of sticks!

2012…. The End…

More and more reports are coming out that Blu-ray will exceed DVD in sales in 2012.

See engadged blog: http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/06/24/blu-ray-disc-sales-estimated-to-exceed-dvds-in-2012/

Was this a cheap ploy to draw conspiracy blog readers to the site? Yes, and it is shameless. I give full credit to our Lead New Media Specialist (DVD Authoring) Vince Clore for the ploy.

Netflix Streaming: Improving the Quality of the Stream

I recently installed a Netflix Streaming Blu-ray player in a friend’s house. The idea seemed pretty seemless until you start digging into it. My first observation was the installation is not something a “non-geek” can do with ease. The player did not have the right firmware out of the box and we had to do a complicated USB download and installation (the USB stick had to be totally clear of any other files).

Once we got the correct software loaded on the player, it worked quickly. You queue up some movies in your Netflix account and select them on your on-screen menu and it starts to stream the video to your blu-ray player within 30 seconds.

My problem was with the quality. There was a “quality bar” indicator that showed us that we only had 2 bars out of 10. Apparently the quality of the video codec streamed to your tv depends on your connection. The streaming of the movies were terrible at 2 bars. Barely watchable.

Here are some tips from Netflix on how to improve the quality: http://blog.netflix.com/2009/03/netflix-trying-for-consistent.html

If you do actually get your player to work, at a watchable quality, you will come to know quickly that a very limited library is available for streaming. That was the most disappointing aspect.

As a videophile, I recommend not hassling with the above. It will likely lead to disappointement.

DVD, Blu-ray, Digital Downloading Stop Fighting… Consumer Satisfaction Follows!

Everybody seems to pit optical media formats versus something. DVD vs. Digital Downloading. DVD vs. Blu-ray. Blu-ray vs. YouTube. ENOUGH FIGHTING!!! It is confusing everybody. It looks as though Hollywood is going to mediate a peaceful resolution. The Disney movie Bolt will be released in a package that contains a DVD, a Blu-ray Disc, and a Digital Copy.

When I buy a movie, I want it to work on everything. I want it to work on my phone, my blu-ray player, my DVD player. For once in the last 5 years, I think the industry is doing itself a favor. Plus, disc manufacturers like GLMT should be salivating over the opportunity.

3D: 1980’s Deja Vu or Video Display of the Future?

The thought of a new high definition version of 3-D is enticing. Prior to the Super Bowl, I picked up a pair of “3-D Glasses” to watch the half-time Sobe Commercial. I naturally assumed that with the advent of HD, 3-D would be greatly enhanced. I was disappointed.

I went on to read that the version of 3-D used fro the halftime show was not actually new technology. It was the same old school, eye-fatiguing, red and blue-lens technology used as a gimmick in the late eighties.

However, this attempt to raise 3-D awareness was merely a marketing ploy and not a display of the power of the technology. Apparently, new movies like Coraline that utilize “RealD” technology are incredibly impressive. I will be viewing one of these movies in the next week and I will write about my observations.