DRM Lobby Attampts to block HD DVD Crack
A digital rights management (DRM) licensing authority’s attempt to block bloggers, search firms and open source developers from publishing details of a "DVD crack" has led to a revolt.
The argument centres around the spread of a software key that disables copyright protection on Blu–ray and HD–DVD disks therefore allowing them to be copied and played on unlicensed equipment.
In a letter to a variety of websites the Advanced Access Content System Licensing Administrator (AACS–LA), the authority behind the DRM for HD–DVD disks, demanded that the information regarding the "crack" be removed. The AACS–LA is backed by technology vendors including IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Sony, Toshiba and Walt Disney.
The organisation said that such sites were "providing and offering to the public a technology, product, service, device, component, or part thereof that is primarily designed, produced, or marketed for the purpose of cir***venting the technological protection measures afforded by AACS".
The letter continues to say that doing so contravenes the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act and therefore "violates the rights of the AACS".
The "crack" first appeared in mid February on a Doom 9 forum and numerous bloggers then posted the key on their websites. It was next submitted to Digg.com, a community–based news site, to spread the word further. They have decided not to censor the information and are determined to go down fighting if they have to.
Although being touted as a "crack", it is actually a hack which will probably stop working soon, and because of that it may be that the rights of the AACS haven’t been broken at all.
It is actually the key from WinDVD’s software which has been copied and when used will let someone copy HD–DVD. This however, will only work until the key in the next batch of HD–DVD pressings is revoked by the manufacturers,so in a few months this "crack" will be useless on newer releases.
Watch this space…
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Originally Posted by zad
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