Blu-ray to allow legal copying

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 15th June 2009
Comments (22) Stumble
Blu-ray to allow legal copying

The Blu-ray standard is set to bring a limited form of fair use early next year, with the right to make a single full-resolution copy of your discs.

Blu-ray could be set to get a legitimate copy feature as soon as 2010, according to the head of the AACS Licensing Authority.

As reported over on Electronista, the high-definition optical disc format is set for a new revision some time in the first quarter of 2010 which will bring Managed Copy to the specification.

Managed Copy will be part of “almost all” Blu-ray releases by the middle of next year, and will allow a single full-resolution copy of the film to be made. Once copied, the film will be writeable to Blu-ray discs – should you be able to afford a writer – or DVDs, and will even include a DRM-equipped Windows Media Video export option.

Sadly, Apple won't be joining the fun: despite having been invited by the AACS Licensing Authority, the company has not provided support for Managed Copy in any of its own proprietary formats – which means no support for the feature on the iPod or Apple TV platforms. With WMV support, this could be the boost that video-based Zune devices have been waiting for.

The move comes as the industry comes under fire for increasingly draconian DRM restrictions, and may go some way to appease those who want the right to create a backup copy before their kids destroy the high-priced originals. Whether the function will be flexible – and easy – enough to sway people away from the less legitimate options out there remains to be seen.

Does the ability to make a limited number of locked-down copies render the argument against DRM moot, or should the Authority be looking to drop the concept altogether? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
Quote adam_bagpuss 15th June 2009, 14:00
Step in the right direction but its still a fail.

This is due to 1 very big issue:

you make a backup so it can destroyed by kids etc spills whatever BUT what happens after that since you can only make 1 backup.
After the first 1 is trashed you have to use the original therefore FAIL.
Quote Boogle 15th June 2009, 14:04
Glad to see a step in the right direction. But I agree with adam_bagpuss, only 1 backup is a mistake. I think they should have 3 backups, that slowly increase again once every couple of months. So if I backup 3 times in Jan, in Feb I can write another backup.

Similiar to MS activation which lets you activate again after a certain period of time. I've never had to phone up MS to activate my Vista license, and only had to phone up once with XP.
Quote yakyb 15th June 2009, 14:09
backup to img would be fine would allow easier HTPC use also
Quote Matticus 15th June 2009, 14:37
adam_bagpuss and Boogle. You are somewhat missing the point.

They are letting you make a backup, making a backup is everyone excuse for wanting to copy a film. If you could make 3 or 5 or 10 backups, then why would your friends or family have to buy the film.

They would just be setting themselves up for a fail.

Maybe they should allow 1 digital backup, and 2 hard copies, I can understand what you mean about being able to create a new copy after x amount of months. But then that would mean your computer would have to be rife with DRM software to be able to allow this.

Also: Blu-ray films are not actually that expensive, and by the middle of next year I imagine ever less expensive. Its not like your kids are smashing a £40 disk.
Quote Nicb 15th June 2009, 15:30
This is good news.
The way I see it, I burn in my own efficient configured way, but I never have more than one physical copy and one digital copy.
This takes people like me out of the red and more in the grey............ were almost seeing eye to eye on my rights. :)

Piracy's bad:P
Quote mclean007 15th June 2009, 15:31
Given a writeable BR costs not far off the cost of a movie, it's not that relevant. If you let your kids use a disc, and they are playing it often enough to trash it taking it in and out of its box etc., then you've just got to accept that it will get damaged. If you're fussed, buy them the DVD instead and rip that. Kids in general aren't going to care about 1080p, next gen video codecs, 7.1 lossless surround sound etc., so save your money, buy them the DVD (rip and give them a copy if you want), and save Blu-Ray for the grown ups.

Or use AnyDVD HD.
Quote adam_bagpuss 15th June 2009, 15:42
yeah i guess if you can make 1 digital backup and burn that as many times as you want thats ok.

people do need to make more than 1 backup as people trash discs all the time. not us techies we take care of our stuff but your average joe/jo is leaving it out on the side in the sun or using it as a coaster.

problem is if they allow 1 backup to be made does that mean its DRM locked anyway ? or they gunna provide this backup software with the DVD ?
Quote Blademrk 15th June 2009, 15:46
Bit of a fail to be honest, Copies must be requested before they can be performed (which is also at a cost), plus there's a hardware restriction too (copied blue ray discs will have a serial number which is recorded and will not play on all hardware, in fact of the current hardware only the PS3 will be upgraded through software to allow playback of copied blue rays).

linky
Linky
Quote Phil Rhodes 15th June 2009, 16:27
When they finally convince me I can actually play blu-ray disks without having to pointlessly re-buy my monitor and graphics card, I'll look into it.

Until then, the only place I can get HD content is actually bittorrent!
Quote storm20200 15th June 2009, 16:51
It's a step in the right direction for the industry but I'd still choose an illegal backup instead, DRM is always fail and unless they improve it so that it doesn't try and destroy your computer I will always go around it, even on games I legally own I'll still use a no cd crack.
Quote Floyd 15th June 2009, 17:52
I copy my DVDs so I can have one original copy at the house and I can take my expendible disks when I travel and such so if I mess up a disk I can just make a new one when I get home.
Quote leexgx 15th June 2009, 18:11
anydvd HD fix's any problems i have playing BR disks, (also copying them, as the copied disk would result in no copy protection so it play any way)

most would not bother copying BR due to the size any way,
Quote spt 15th June 2009, 18:13
Its not the format that matters, the sad fact still is it is illegal to make any copy (well in the UK anyway) of anything without the consent of the copyright holder. Until the law changes to acknowledge that people want the same media several times in different formats but should only have to pay to buy it once we are stuck with a broken law.

I know the process is currently being debated by the powers that be in the UK but it is still a long way off changing a law that modern living has deemed unusable.
Quote HourBeforeDawn 15th June 2009, 18:22
Huh well this will be nice for people that are actually wanting to do this for legal reasons, for everyone else thats just doing it because they dont want to buy blu-ray well they will still have AnyDVD HD lol.
Quote Faulk_Wulf 15th June 2009, 21:33
Oh wow! A single copy! I'm silenced with awe! /sarcasm.

That's like the pathetic "this movie comes with a FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD".
I can't use the digital download on my Life Free Die Hard because I bought it used and someone already took the digital copy.
And I can't use the copy from I am Legend because I downloaded it to an old computer that died.

Just let us rip, copy, and burn the media that we PAID for. (Paid, not pirated.) As long as we're not selling for a profit/distributing it in mass quantities-- its our right.

/continue this very old argument ad naseum.
Quote HourBeforeDawn 15th June 2009, 21:58
Quote:
Originally Posted by Faulk_Wulf
Oh wow! A single copy! I'm silenced with awe! /sarcasm.

That's like the pathetic "this movie comes with a FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD".
I can't use the digital download on my Life Free Die Hard because I bought it used and someone already took the digital copy.
And I can't use the copy from I am Legend because I downloaded it to an old computer that died.

Just let us rip, copy, and burn the media that we PAID for. (Paid, not pirated.) As long as we're not selling for a profit/distributing it in mass quantities-- its our right.

/continue this very old argument ad naseum.

LOL you know you can reset the digital key by sending the company an email, I have done it several times.

As for the whole let us rip our paid for media well as the saying goes it only take a few bad apples to ruin the bunch so because SO many people pirate, they are forced to do such things.
Quote mikeuk2004 15th June 2009, 23:04
Quote:
Originally Posted by Faulk_Wulf
Oh wow! A single copy! I'm silenced with awe! /sarcasm.

That's like the pathetic "this movie comes with a FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD".
I can't use the digital download on my Life Free Die Hard because I bought it used and someone already took the digital copy.

What key is that?? I got Hancock and it came with a DVD with the digital copy to transfer to PC. Are there blu-rays with only keys and download links?

I bought a Small TV and came with a free DVD player, does that mean I got to give the dvd player witht he TV when I sell it? If you cant download the free digital download because you bought second hand then there you go, thats your reason. I got 1000 microsoft points free when i bought GTA IV, the person that buys my copy second hand aint going to get that benefit.

You want the free stuff that comes with a product, then buy it new and stop complaining.
Quote HourBeforeDawn 15th June 2009, 23:16
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeuk2004
What key is that?? I got Hancock and it came with a DVD with the digital copy to transfer to PC. Are there blu-rays with only keys and download links?

I bought a Small TV and came with a free DVD player, does that mean I got to give the dvd player witht he TV when I sell it? If you cant download the free digital download because you bought second hand then there you go, thats your reason. I got 1000 microsoft points free when i bought GTA IV, the person that buys my copy second hand aint going to get that benefit.

You want the free stuff that comes with a product, then buy it new and stop complaining.

Digital Download or Digital Copy is for PC useage it has no effect on the normal DVD or bly-ray nor does it have any effect on said players, it is simply to be used on a PC or IPOD or the likes.
Quote shaffaaf27 16th June 2009, 06:37
Quote:
Originally Posted by adam_bagpuss
Step in the right direction but its still a fail.

This is due to 1 very big issue:

you make a backup so it can destroyed by kids etc spills whatever BUT what happens after that since you can only make 1 backup.
After the first 1 is trashed you have to use the original therefore FAIL.

you people are never happpy!
Quote Hahokas 16th June 2009, 08:12
Why is the entertainment industry waisting their money to complicate consumers every day life?
Why they aren't thinking up new ways to distribute the media?
BR and all the optical formats are dying race. Why keep the old technology running?
Flash is much more reliable media for this kind of use. Flash prices would go down if it were adopted by this kind of use.

Also broadband connections prices should go down and prices of legiment downloading should go down. Then it would intrest normal consumers and most likely amount of pirating would also go down.
In Finland you have to pay 25-35euros (¨~ 35-50 USD) of a single BR movie, which is like robing to me.

DVD's only made so popular after their prices were cut drasticly and you could buy your dvd-player at affordable price at your local super market.

What they are missing is the right channel and media to distribute entertainment at affordable price. And I think that it would be their top priority to keep their consumers happy, because they can do what they wan't with their money.
Quote Jenny_Y8S 16th June 2009, 10:04
For all you bit-torrent users, this is good news for you. If they made the copying easy and un-restricted then there would be slightly less demand for the torrents.

As it is, all these half arsed attempts to control are just increasing the demand for the illegal copies.

My message to the publishers....

Sorry dudes, pandoras box is open, no ammount of gaffa tape is going to secure this mutha's lid - there's too many hands stuffed in grabbing all they can.
Quote adam_bagpuss 16th June 2009, 10:34
LOL true strike.

when i buy something i expect to OWN it. i can therefore do whatever the hell i want with it including making 1000 copies if i please.

if i distribute these yes ive broken the law and i should be dealt with.

now with all the crap thats on DVD you basically rent them and im certainly not playin £15-20 to rent.

get rid of DRM and copywrite as it doesnt effect piracy anyway since they are easily cracked
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