The latest version of the High-bandwith Definition Content Protection standard is under attack according to Warner Brothers and a subdivision of Intel, called DCP (Digital Content Protection). HDCP 2.2 was designed to add an extra amount of difficulty in intercepting high definition video and audio, and is an important part of the protection for the new 4K movies being released online and in the new 4K Blu-ray soon to arrive on the market.
Warner and Intel accuse the Chinese technology company Legend Sky of producing a "stripper" device that removes HDCP 2.2 and allows anyone to copy the high definition content illegally. Legend Sky sells these devices under the brand name HD Fury, and they have been readily available since November. You can purchase them at the moment at many reputable sites online, including giant retailers like Amazon.com.
In the complaint presented to the federal court in New York, Warner and Intel argue that: “The HDFury Devices harm copyright owners like Warner Bros. because they enable Digital Content to be displayed without the protections of HDCP, thereby enabling users to access copyrighted works, make and/or distribute copies of copyrighted works […] all without the permission of the copyright owner."
The suit alleges that Legend Sky is in violation of the DMCA in the US for producing equipment that bypasses encryption, and they say the company is in violation of the Lanham Act, for falsely claiming that the devices comply with the license required for all HDCP 2.2 equipment. Intel and Warner want to ban all sales and advertisements of the devices and they are pressing for compensation for damages already incurred.
Though the movie studio and Intel seem to have a strong case here, interception of video through such HDCP strippers is not normally seen as a primary method of copying high definition content. Pirates generally use other techniques. But this suit does show that the studios are going to defend 4K content vigorously. A more interesting fight may come about when the studios start releasing the new HD Blu-ray discs, and the decryption programs we've seen work for DVD's and regular Blu-ray find ways to break the newer forms of protection on those movies.
You can read more on the HDCP 2.2 stripper case at Torrent Freak.
