encryption as usual

[rocks]

it seems to me that blue ray would not be the format i would opt for, purely on the basis that the amount of encryption levels are 2 more than hd-dvd format. on that alone i would not buy blue ray. it means that it is highly likely that one could not even make a back up copy of a legitimate dvd that one had purchased in the store. to add insult to injury, sony laptops cannot have software or firmware changed inorder to play all regions for dvd's. therefore, if you decided to buy a sony laptop in the usa, but bought a dvd in the uk, you could not play it on your new laptop. if blue ray was to win the format wars it would be highly likely that you could not even make a copy which was region free so that you could play it on your new sony lap top. ohhhhhh, how great it is to be rich and powerful, as you can then buy the laws you want. remember that sony was the corporate that pushed through the compliance of all dvd burners so that they could not be region free!!!!!!

[camaj]

Try Blu-ray, it's got to be better than blue ray.

But seriously, it's not a good idea to dismiss Blu-ray just because it's "levels are 2 more than hd-dvd". Unless you're a hardcore pirate the DRM won't matter a jot. One of them (Rom Mark) stops people playing back pirated discs. The other, BD+, can stop a BD-r drive (not stand alone) from being hacked. If something is hacked they will probably stop you from using it until you update the firmware. Like I say neither is a huge deal.

As for Sony laptops, I'll take your word for it. The only thing I can say is it surprises me the number of people who take DVD ripping or region hacks for granted and then get annoyed that companies try to prevent it. As much as I love the ability to rip and to play back imported discs I realise that I'm doing so against the wishes of the creators and I don't expect them to surrender without a fight.

[bluescrn]

I don't really care about copy protection as long as the disc is never locked to a specific player. There'll always be the 'analog hole' with any video/audio copy protection scheme, so it'll always be possible to get a ripped copy, albeit with reduced quality (but for the main 'legit' reasons for ripping - video iPods and other portable devices - this is unlikely to be an issue)

I'm far more concerned about unskippable trailers/ads and other crap, and to a lesser extent, region codes. But hopefully the competition between the formats will result in a bit more consumer-friendliness than we'd get if there was only one format...

[Woz]

But hopefully the competition between the formats will result in a bit more consumer-friendliness than we'd get if there was only one format...

You think they're competing for the consumer?
At the moment they are fighting over studio support, and in this case, copy protection and control of content is a selling point.

[thescrounger]

What concerns me is being able to get uncut versions of films from other regions, and I'm not a fan of speedup either.