Text 17333, 150 rader
Skriven 2007-04-10 15:43:32 av Rich Gauszka (1:379/45)
Ärende: Macrovision DRM  + DVD movie  + PC = 'Macrovision distribution failed'
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From: "Rich Gauszka" <gauszka@dontspamhotmail.com>

Macrovision must be protecting us from playing war movies on our computers

"Flags of our Fathers" by Warner Bros, "We Were Soldiers" by Paramount, and
"Battlestar Galactica 2.5" ;-)

http://weblog.infoworld.com/gripeline/archives/2007/04/a_macro_vision.html?sour
ce=NLC-GRIPE&cgd=2007-04-10

What do you when Digital Rights Management (DRM) keeps you from using a product
that you legitimately purchased? Who can help you figure out how to make it
work - the publisher of the material, the manufacturer of the playing device,
or the DRM supplier? Those were the questions one reader had after he
discovered that three DVDs that couldn't all play in his computer were all
"protected" by Macrovision DRM.



"I recently let my girlfriend borrow my DVD player because hers went out," the
reader wrote. "Well, I thought, that's okay because my computer is hooked up to
my TV and I had a DVD drive on the computer so I can still watch my movie
collection. Boy, was I wrong. It seems that three out of the last four DVD
movies I had just bought will not play on my computer."



The DVDs that wouldn't play were "Flags of our Fathers" by Warner Bros, "We
Were Soldiers" by Paramount, and "Battlestar Galactica 2.5" by Universal, the
reader said. "Each time it comes up with 'Macrovision distribution failed'
error message and playback is not possible. These movies were purchased at
WalMart just days before, but here I am with legal copies of DVD movies and I
can't play them. A couple of days later when my DVD player was back, the movies
play just fine on the player."



Before the reader got his DVD player back, he tried doing some troubleshooting
on the problem. "I did some checking on the Internet, and some people said that
if you have a DVD burner on your system, the Macrovision distribution fails.
There was also another explanation that the newer Nvidia drivers for my
graphics card won't support Macrovision with a DVD burner installed. I don't
know, but I think this is ridiculous that I would have to revert to a older
driver for my graphics card just to watch a movie."



The reader wasn't going to waste any more time trying to get past the
Macrovision DRM, but I thought his experience raised some interesting questions
about who you are supposed to call when you're unfairly thwarted by copy
protection schemes. So I contacted Macrovision to see if they could suggest why
these three particular titles wouldn't play in the reader's computer. And I
hoped they might be able to tell exactly how the average consumer should go
about troubleshooting this kind of DRM problem.



After checking with Macrovision technical staff, a Macrovision spokesperson got
back to me with a rather lengthy answer. "Macrovision routinely tests its DVD
protection technology (RipGuard) with a broad variety of consumer electronic
devices, including PCs, in order to ensure a consistent, easy and enjoyable
experience for consumers and is not aware of any PC playback issues," the
Macrovision spokesperson wrote. "Given the scenario your reader queried, the
DVDs should work fine, just like all of his other DVDs did."



Potential sources of the problem, Macrovision said, included some that were not
related directly related to the DRM. The DVD media itself could be flawed or
marginal, or the DVD player on his computer could be impaired or degraded by
dirt and dust in a way that would cause some DVD titles not to play. Another
possibility would be that there could be a mismatch with regional restrictions
built into the DVD or video standards like PAL and NTSC.



Then there's the possibility that the PC's operating system, graphics, and/or
DVD playing application could have a conflict with the DRM or with each other.
"On a personal computer there is always the possibility that there are
anomalies within the graphics driver or the DVD playing application," the
Macrovision spokesperson wrote. "To determine in this specific case if this is
an issue, it would be helpful to know more about the particular PC being used,
including the graphics chip set part number and driver version number, the
application software used to play the DVD and whether the problem is repeatable
using other playing applications, and the operating system version, including
what service pack updates are installed. However, even without this information
the recommended best practice here would be for a consumer to check on-line for
any updates to the graphics driver, DVD application software, and/or operating
system, in that order, for a possible remedy."



In addition, the PC's display configuration can sometimes cause conflicts with
DRM. "Due to some design limitations, certain dual display mode configurations
may be inhibited for playback of copy protected content," the Macrovision
spokesperson wrote. "The most common is attempting to view copy protected DVD
title with a PC that is configured for 'Clone' mode. In such cases, an error
message is usually presented to the user -- unfortunately the text doesn't
often convey the cause very clearly. If this occurs, it is generally a simple
process to reconfigure the computer to either 'Extended Desktop' dual view, or
even just 'single view' mode."



"These are the most likely sources of your reader's problem based on
Macrovision's experience with these issues in the past," the Macrovision
spokesperson continued. "Generally, the best way for a consumer to get help on
issues with playback is through the maker of the device they are using - in
this case, the PC maker -- or the player software. While Macrovision works
closely with various consumer electronics and PC companies to help ensure
broad, consistent and easy playback of DVDs protected with RipGuard, it's
difficult to make a sweeping rule for diagnosing and remedying playback issues
given all the moving parts that aren't related to Macrovision."



So let's see. The average consumer confronted with a problem like our reader
had should buy a optical disk cleaner kit, delve into the mysteries of PAL and
NTSC formats and DVD geographical coding, download a bunch of drivers and
updates, (or maybe find some older drivers, according to the advice our reader
found on the Internet), and mess around with your display configuration. And if
that doesn't work, try calling HP or Apple or Microsoft and ask them why your
PC can't play Battlestar Gallactica 2.5. Good luck with that.



The Macrovision spokesperson acknowledges that these are not ideal solutions.
"You do bring up an important point and something that needs to be considered,
especially as devices and formats proliferate. Macrovision takes the issue of
playability seriously and is considering ways of educating and expanding the
resources available to consumers on this topic. I hope this information and
guidance helps somehow. We realize it is not a complete solution to what you
are looking for, but it is a point we are raising with our customers and other
industry partners such as the MPAA to discuss ways we could work to alleviate
it."



Well, that's terrific, although somehow I doubt anybody's going to be very
comfortable calling the MPAA when they have a problem playing a DVD on their
computer. What we really need is far simpler solution, but it's not one that
Macrovision will like. DRM can cause a lot of trouble for the customer, and -
because it doesn't stop the pirates for even a minute - it really doesn't wind
up benefiting anyone. The music industry is showing signs of finally realizing
that DRM is not the answer, but it's going to be a while before the same light
dawns with the movie studios. In the meantime, what can you do when the DRM
doesn't work? Well, make your voice heard on the Gripe Line.

--- BBBS/NT v4.01 Flag-5
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