Macrovision wants DVD Decrypter pulled from AfterDawn server

Macrovision is also probably stressing due to public reports concerning the mixed results from content protected by one of their other products known as RipGuard. This software was designed to stop rippers dead in their tracks, much like a can of Raid bug spray on a roach. Jusifying the need
for such a product, they use unamed studies on the Macrovision webpage, with statements such as: “Each year, studios lose up to one billion dollars through the digital hole. We created RipGuard DVD to help you get most of it back..” They go on to promise that with this product, studios would enjoy a return of up to 97% of their lost profits! Sounds too good to be true and according to this Forbes article, it very well could be.  The report states that while it is effective against some ripping software, it is easily bypassed by others.

In the above linked article from Forbes, while relating a recent study done by the Piper analyst firm, they mention that DreamWorks Animation was the first studio to use RipGuard and the protection was added to the DVD release of ”Madagascar”. However, according to Pipers Gene Munster, it was not a bulletproof solution:

“We were able to circumvent the technology and rip a perfect copy of ['Madagascar'] using a free DVD ripper downloaded from the Internet,”

On the positive side for the studios, the software did not cause any technical issues with playback on any DVD machine the firm tried. Piper also noted that RipGuard was effective against DVD X Copy and 123 Copy DVD. So the question is, will RipGuard software frustrate end users enough to cause them to give up on ripping a DVD, or will the word get around on which program(s) to use? Time will tell and we can be sure that content providers will be watching this situation closely. Especially when other easy to use DVD ripping products such as AnyDVD is out there, not to mention the freeware ripping app, DVDFab Decrypter!

Lets switch gears here a minute, to take a look at the much older Macrovision protection commonly used on VHS tapes. This analog copy protection that most are familiar with, is still used today on some DVDs as well, causing problems with playback on certain decoding operations such as upscaling. It can cause unpleasant effects on your display and even force the DVD player to output in 480i mode rather than the 720p or 1080i that you want for large screens.

Fortunately, for compliance with the DVD Forum, Macrovision is only required to be enabled on Composite and S-Video outputs. Therefore, if you wish to bypass it’s effects on the output of your equipment, simply use a Digital Video Interface (DVI) connection and avoid using any analog ports. This should be a prime consideration anyway during equipment upgrades for the future, to purchase items with this pure digital interface. This gives a much cleaner looking result on the newer HDTVs by skipping an encoding process along the way to your display and works a charm on upscaling DVD players that have it.

Again, Macrovision touts itself a company that is a studios best buddy, but in reality, they are merely out to make a buck upon others creativity by stomping on the legal rights of end users and hobbling some newer technologies from operating correctly. They can bully those that do not have the money for a legal defense by acquiring their work and then like an impetuous child, attempt to take back their new toys, but it wont work, you can’t fight the world and you can’t fight technology. If you build it, it can someday be dismantled. If it is on the Internet, you can’t completely stop it from distribution.