iTunes movies require HDCP monitor on new MacBooks

Now that you are the proud owner of the latest MacBook, you go on iTunes, purchase a movie and during the download, prepare a large bowl of popcorn and power up the projector for the big screen, which was brilliant with the old one.  Then as you sit back and press play, iTunes proudly greets you with the following message:

So much for being a genuine paying customer…  According to Ars Technica, Apple has introduced a hidden new feature, HDCP, to the Mini DisplayPort connector of its new MacBook and MacBook Pro series.  Up until now, HDCP has been mainly used to protect the connection between the playback device and display when playing Blu-ray and HD DVD content.  Apple TV’s box also enforces HDCP with its HDMI port.  However, just recently, a teacher John received the above error when he purchased Hellboy 2 on iTunes and tried watching it on the school’s projector from his new MacBook. 

Another problem John discovered is that there is no way of telling which movies are affected other than to try playing them, as it affects some new and old movies and not others.  This error will appear when a Mini DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter is connected to the MacBook and both iTunes and QuickTime are affected. 

Apparently, John is not the only one affected by this issue as the Apple’s discussion forum has plenty of complaints about this.  Going by some posts, some new MacBook users report that they cannot play any HD movies or shows with a non-HDCP capable monitor, including many Apple Cinema displays and DVI monitors.  Some Standard Definition movies (especially where HD versions are available) will not play either.  One user reported that the issue does not occur on older MacBooks that lack HDCP support.