DRM + no firmware update = No "Avatar" for you!

[Sporkman]

An unusual glitch has angered some "Avatar" Blu-ray owners. For these unlucky people, since the disc won't play on their Blu-ray players, their new "Avatar" DVD serves no real purpose other than to sit idly on the coffee table...

It appears the main culprit concerning playback issues with "Avatar" is, ironically, the disc's DRM (digital rights management). DRM, which is the very technology meant to prevent bootleggers from illegally copying the film, is the very technology preventing people who actually paid for the disc from watching the film. Even with updated firmware, a lot of Blu-ray players weren't prepared for these security measures...

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/movie-talk-avatar-blu-ray-consumers-cant-watch-DVD.html

[donkyhotay]

Gotta love DRM, it claim to be trying to prevent piracy but as far as I can tell it encourages piracy more then it prevents it.

[swoll1980]

Gotta love DRM, it claim to be trying to prevent piracy but as far as I can tell it encourages piracy more then it prevents it.

DRM is one of the silliest things ever implemented. It does absolutly nothing to stop piracy. You can download a working version of Avatar right now. It's ironic that the only people that can't watch it are the ones that paid for it.

[note32]

this is why we torrent.

[CharlesA]

Gotta love DRM, it claim to be trying to prevent piracy but as far as I can tell it encourages piracy more then it prevents it.

No kidding. It's the same deal with games as well. Oh, you cannot play it because the DRM doesn't like the cd/dvd? Torrent a pirated copy and you are good to go.

So pathetically sad. I wish they would learn that the only people DRM hurt are the ones who legally obtain software/movies. :(

[donkyhotay]

No kidding. It's the same deal with games as well. Oh, you cannot play it because the DRM doesn't like the cd/dvd? Torrent a pirated copy and you are good to go.

So pathetically sad. I wish they would learn that the only people DRM hurt are the ones who legally obtain software/movies. :(

It all seems so obvious to anyone that actually steps back and looks at it for a second that I've wondered if the MPAA/RIAA/etc. are really so stupid or if they *do* know it doesn't work and do it anyway because of some agenda. [conspiracy theory]With the importance the transfer of knowledge has had in human history maybe it's all a plot to control information. It used to be illegal to teach certain people to read, illegal to translate certain books (bible) into the 'common' language. All throughout history, those in power was able to maintain their power by limiting knowledge. Maybe that is the true purpose of DRM and the whole "it stops illegal piracy" is a smokescreen for that.[/conspiracy theory] I'm not saying I actually believe this but it is something I've wondered in the back of my mind when I find out about some of the worst examples of DRM because I have trouble picturing a large billion dollar company/organization going through so much trouble to hurt their own profits.

[Directive 4]

this is the first time that DRM has done something good.

it's protecting these people from themselves:popcorn:

[Chrysantine]

this is why we torrent.
And that's why they'll implement more and more invasive DRM, tighten the laws and lay out more punishment.

See the problem here?

[MaxIBoy]

Nah, the DVD players just have standards.

[Objekt]

This sort of nonsense is why I have zero interest in buying any sort of Blu-ray gear.

Blu-ray was already obsolete as a data storage medium, even before it hit the market. An external hard drive is far more economical, as well as vastly more convenient and capable.

That leaves "content delivery." 15-20 GB for a full 1080p movie is pretty hefty, so a prerecorded optical disc is still a reasonable way to rent/buy a copy. But the content mafia have cocked that up as well, as exemplified by this news item.

I just can't muster any interest in Blu-ray, both because I don't have any use for it as a data storage medium, and because the content mafia have done their best to make it a miserable "content delivery" platform as well.

This is the sound of me not rushing out to buy a dedicated Blu-ray player, or a Blu-ray reader or burner for my PC.

[Chronon]

And that's why they'll implement more and more invasive DRM, tighten the laws and lay out more punishment.

See the problem here?

But this just poisons their own well. They are taking action against their own consumers, which is not bound to lead to a positive outcome for them. If they continually prevent me from viewing media that I have rightfully purchased then I will simply go without.

[Lightstar]

DRM made me download avatar bluray torrent :)

I did buy the bluray movie, but it doesn't play, so.. I downloaded the movie. They should offer the download.

Now when my friends want to borrow it, I give them the .avi.
If they make copies and give to friends it's not my concern.

Thanks DRM for promoting movie copying / recoding / downloading.

[oldos2er]

This sort of nonsense is why I have zero interest in buying any sort of Blu-ray gear.


+1

It's also why I haven't bought a Kindle or any other ereader.

[andras artois]

DRM harms paying consumers more than the pirates (YARRRR!).

If they actually stopped being ridiculous about the prices of DVD's(£10-15 for new) and blu-ray (£15-20 for new) discs and instead sold them online direct to computers or to digital media for lower prices they would make a whole bunch more money.

Charge say a £5 for a brand new film online in DVD quality and say £7-8 for blu-ray quality that'd makes millions. They wouldn't have to pay for the physical media and the staff packaging the disc's wouldn't even be needed saving money.

With downloading legitimately people will just think oh a few more quid on an already low price isn't much for blu-ray therefore buy more blu-ray films making more money.

Even I'd buy films if they were a fiver.

[Objekt]

Recently, I replaced a lousy monitor (Acer P244Wbd) with a much better one (Samsung BX2440X). It is a secondary monitor, for watching movies & TV.

The monitor looks great, but the content I can get does not use it to full advantage. With the monitor's native resolution of 1920x1080, limitations of the DVD medium are uncomfortably apparent, both in resolution and color depth.

Regardless of whether the source DVD is anamorphic widescreen, letterboxed, or presents an old-fashioned 4:3 aspect ratio TV picture, everything is being scaled to fit a 1920x1080 screen.

Sometimes it doesn't make a big difference (e.g. The Simpsons), but other times it looks bloody awful (e.g. almost any recent TV show).

I am not sure whether the color artifacts are the fault of lousy DVD authoring, or are in fact due to the compression inherent in DVD video, but it's really obvious in darker scenes. Blu-ray was supposed to address that, with up to 36-bit color depth possible, at least through an HDMI connection. I'm not sure that's possible with a DVD-D connection, but it's kind of a moot point anyway.

Unfortunately, I don't see how I'm going to get full HD stuff to watch on my HD monitor any time soon. Blu-ray is a non-starter for reasons already beaten to death. I'd like to think that the successor to Blu-ray will not be tied to an obsolete storage medium (like an optical disc!), and will not be "protected" so much that paying customers are unable to watch. That said, I am prepared to be disappointed.