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SlySoft's AnyDVD HD goes retail, Blu-ray beta in the works
It's hard out there for DRM these days, as we've got diligent users working 'round the clock to reinstate the fair use rights that AACS and similar restrictions seem to remove, and now there's an easy, streamlined, and costly method to cracking down on your HD DVD's DRM scheme. Those out there looking to make backups, view your content sans PowerDVD Ultra (or without an HDCP-compliant graphics card / display), get rid of user prohibitions, and skip over studio logos and warning messages should look no further, as SlySoft's AnyDVD HD has been relinquished from its brief stay in beta territory and is ready for purchase. While we've already seen just how compromised DRM is as a whole, and we've witnessed giant steps leading up to this occasion, this $79.99 software gives users a point-and-click approach to freeing up their protected content in order to make it a tad more user-friendly. Moreover, the company's marketing director insinuated that a Blu-ray version of the software should be hitting the beta stage "later this quarter," so if you're anxious to remove those chains from your precious HD DVDs, and don't want the bother with the free alternatives already out there, be sure to hit the read link with credit card in hand.[Via DTV]
MPAA strikes again, says transporting DVDs to iPods is wrong
We don't seeing anything with helping a man out, or cutting him a sweet deal if he picks up a bundle of goods, but apparently the MPAA isn't down with companies loading the DVDs that consumers purchase onto their iPods as a friendly convenience. In another round of studios forcing consumers to purchase content multiple times for no good reason at all, Paramount Pictures has filed a lawsuit against the all but helpless Load 'N Go Video, which provided customers picking up an iPod and a few DVDs with a converting service to get flicks onto their handheld as a thank you for their business. According to the suit, the actual ripping of the DVD is illegal under the almighty DMCA, making the entire process illegal, fair use or not. Evidently selling millions of copies of Mission: Impossible III isn't good enough, as it appears that customers will be asked to shell out multiple times for the same (admittedly subpar) content. While pirating copies for personal gain is certainly aggravating the law, transcoding content for personal use sure seems harmless to us, but you'll have an exceedingly difficult time convincing Hollywood of that.
BitTorrent clients coming to NASes and routers: PC-less downloads for all
First came the trickle, now the flood. See, BitTorrent is expected to announce 7 routers and 2 NAS storage devices with built-in BitTorrent clients sometime today. Asus will be adding two additional BitTorrent capable routers with 5 more on the way from Planex set to undermine the ethics of Japan. QNAP then, will bring the necessary networked disk with a couple of BitTorrent-enabled NAS servers. Look MPAA, RIAA, we know this isn't how you'd like to start your Monday but just look at the brightside: it's an environmentally friendly way for the kids to be kids since now their PCs won't be running all the time. Hell, we'll even provide ya a list of products for the injuction since it's doubtful you'll find a "made for BitTorrrent" logo anywhere on the box: Asus WL-500gP and WL-500gW routers, the Planex BRC-W14VG-BT, BRC-14VG-BT, BRC-W14V-BT, BLW-HPMM-U, and BLW-HPMM-G routers, and the QNAP TS-101 (pictured) and QNAP TS-201 NAS servers. The ASUS and QNAP boxes will be available Stateside with the TS-101 sporting an eSATA intereface, 3x USB 2.0 ports, and gigabit Ethernet interface for about $279. It certainly won't stop here (without legal intervention) since the client in many cases -- like the TS-101 -- is just a firmware update away. Look, why fight it, let the people embrace their legal right to download copyrighted material, uh, in Holland.
Los Angeles-area Boy Scouts can earn "activity patch" in copyright
Los Angeles-area Boy Scouts (this author used to be among them) will now be able to receive an "activity patch" in respecting copyrights. Different from a merit badge, The Associated Press reports that "an activity patch is not required to advance in the Scouts. Instead, they are awarded for various recreational and educational activities, such as conservation or volunteering at a food bank." Scouts will get a primer in copyright law, will have to identify five types of copyright, and will get to visit a movie studio to learn about "how many people can be harmed by film piracy," as defined by the MPAA. Boing Boing also adds that a movement is underway to educate the Los Angeles Area Council about their concerns of potentially pushing the MPAA's agenda. Jay Neely, an Eagle Scout (as is this author), writes on Boing Boing: "If it's as one-sided or erroneous as your post worries it will be, I'd like to get other current or former scouts to take part in a concerted effort to write the Los Angeles Area Council with our concerns." So basically, this ain't over yet, Hollywood.[Thanks, Rollins]Read - The Associated PressRead - Boing Boing
Culver City to install filters on its municipal WiFi network
They call Los Angeles the City of Angels. We didn't find it to be that exactly -- particularly when much like anywhere else, folks are accustomed to downloading pr0n and tons of illicit materials on BitTorrent. Fortunately for us, upright citizens of Culver City, an LA suburb, will be installing Net filters (Audible Magic's CopySense Network Appliance, to be specific) on its free WiFi municipal network, which covers 10 square blocks in its downtown area. Sadly funnier still are the hacks at the MPAA who praised the move (but of course), saying that this new filter will "help safeguard system users from being subject to illegal files" -- as if somehow all of these "illegal files" just come raining down out of the sky on innocent folks wanting to read, say, Engadget. [Via TechDirt]
ASUS WL-700gE media server and BitTorrent client, whodathunk?
While it may not be as litigiously bold as that Dutch LamaBox peer-to-peer server, we're sure that ASUS' WL-700gE will catch the eye of the MPAA and RIAA all the same. Seemingly, the WL-700gE is just another digital media server packing 802.11b/g WiFi, a 3.5-inch 160GB internal disk drive, 4 x wired Ethernet ports, 3 x USB 2.0 jacks, a built-in firewall, and plenty of on-board apps to serve-up data via Web browser, FTP, Samba, and UPnP/DLNA. It'll even share USB tethered webcams, speakers, and printers across your net. But did you know that buried in the product details (which might explain how we missed the product announcement earlier this year) is support for computer-less BitTorrenting directly over the box's WAN port? That little nugget not only frees-up your in-home bandwidth but allows you to put your computer to sleep as that sweet, sweet media rolls in overnight. So go ahead, pick up the roughly $250 box as priced on-line, slap on a few 750GB drives and put down a retainer for a good trial lawyer, you know, just in case you get carried away.[Via dailywireless]
Spain cracks down on file sharing
It's a sad day for Spanish content pirates, as formerly lax laws allowing P2P file sharing for personal use have just been overturned in favor of strict new rules that make file swappers financially liable for any unauthorized downloading they partake in. Furthermore, the new regulations -- which, unsurprisingly, have been blessed with the MPAA's seal of approval -- also hold ISPs accountable for the P2P activity of their customers, which could be seen as an incentive for service providers to block what they consider suspicious traffic. Even regular law-abiding citizens will be affected by the recent crackdown, as a small tax will now be levied on all blank media to reimburse copyright holders for earnings lost to piracy. While we're totally in support of intellectual property owners getting paid for their content, we worry that these tough new rules will discourage and even prohibit the many legitimate uses of P2P networks that have nothing to do with stealing movies and music -- as usual, a few bad apples (well, maybe more than a few) have caused everyone else to suffer.[Via Slashdot]
Download-and-Burn movies getting closer
Download-and-Burn might just become the new mantra of the MPAA yet. Recently, the studios dropped their asinine controversial demands to retrofit set-top DVD players and DVD-ROM drives with expensive watermark detection technology. Instead, the demand is now limited to new devices with enhanced features such as the ability to burn downloaded movies or support managed copy; not to your run-of-the mill living room DVD player. Under the proposal, these so-called "enhanced devices" would also have to incorporate HDCP on all digital outputs as well as CGMS-A on analog outs in an effort to curb piracy. Something to keep in mind with your next TV purchase, eh? Sure, the watermark technology must still be chosen along with a new method for CSS authentication. But this clears the way for an overall download-and-burn agreement for standard-definition DVDs (not Blu-ray or HD DVD folks) which would allow the likes of Walmart, Target, and Best Buy to implement their download kiosks and enable the good peeps at Netflix to finally stream their flix into our homes for that sweet, sweet burn. [Via Digital Media Thoughts]
RIAA declares music piracy "contained"
If we're to believe RIAA CEO Mitch Bainwol's take on the current state of digital piracy, it would appear that enough consumers have been swayed by the music industry's carrot-and-stick approach of cheap songs and highly-publicized lawsuits that illegal downloading, although not eliminated, has finally been "contained." Even though physical album sales are still declining, Bainwol claims that the rapid growth of legal digital downloads -- up 77% in the past year -- balance out the loss, proving that iTunes, Napster, Rhapsody, and the like are offering compelling services that have encouraged folks to give up their lives of crime. Bainwol certainly paints a rosy picture here, and while we'd love to imagine that our fellow Netizens have suddenly and inexplicably developed a group conscience, what seems much more likely is that higher bandwidth and the advent of the torrent have simply turned former music pirates from the RIAA's nightmare into the MPAA's.
The great divide: UK vs US censorship
When listing the differences between the UK and the USA one usually thinks of spelling, gastronomy and driving on the wrong side of the road, rather than film and game censorship. However, this fascinating post at Terra Nova (along with its thriving comments thread) delves into the differences between the BBFC and MPAA, as well as cultural factors, to try and establish why American consumers are less happy to have age restrictions on games.The whole thread gives an international perspective to current debates over the censorship of violent games. While sexual content in games can be treated as pornography, the lack of existing US legislation covering violence across other media means that singling games out is plain unfair. In the UK, however, ratings of violent and extremely realistic games fall under the Video Recordings Act, which covers any recorded video media.We have to wonder when games will get a category of their own and stand alongside more established media such as film and TV. In the meantime, to find out more about international game classification, Wikipedia's a great place to begin.
What if the DRM on your DVD player didn't work?
Yeah that might make you happy, but it could be a real problem for the manufacturer. Enter Samsung's DVD-HD841, an upconverting DVD player sold in 2004; it didn't sell well until a key "feature" was uncovered, you could hack it to turn off region coding and HDCP protections. The player has long been off the market, but now several movie studios have brought lawsuits against Samsung for their failure to protect content.But we all know that there have been ways around the CSS encryption practically since DVDs launched, so why sue now? Ars Technica supposes that this is more about setting an example for the next generation of DVD players, and I tend to agree. If/when someone finds a way around AACS and HDCP expect the lawsuits to come hard and heavy.
Engadget Podcast 064 - 01.20.06
We promised an all listener-voicemail Engadget Podcast, and that's exactly what you're gonna get this Friday, January 20th. Today's listener questions run the gamut of topics from BitTorrent and movie piracy to CableCard and (HD)TV on your computer, and we do our best to answer 'em with our usual brand of gadgety back-n-forth. If you haven't already blown us up at 1-888-ENGADGET to leave a voicemail, why not start now? Who knows, you may make it on next week's regular Podcast, or if we have enough callers we can always work another voicemail episode of the show. What's that number again? 1-888-ENGADGET. Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [AAC] Download the show (enhanced AAC). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). [Vote] Vote for us on Podcast Alley! Hosts Peter Rojas and Ryan Block Producer Randall Bennett Music J J J - 'Suits' in Japan Format 46:48, 21.4 MB, MP3 Program 01:23 What's the best way to use GMail Mobile? 05:20 Internet Downloads and sweet home theaters ruining theaters? 17:25 Do computer monitors support HD input? 20:56 Will Apple release another PDA? 27:10 Will they ever announce the Motorola Q? 31:58 Does the Nokia 770 support stereo Bluetooth profiles? 33:00 What's up with CableCard? 40:15 Why do cellphones interfere with so many electronic devices? LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Call up the Podcast at: 1-888-ENGADGET
