MS in every DVD.

[mobrien_12]

http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1103_2-5166786.html?tag=zdfd.newsfeed

 

quote:excerpt from the article
An industry standards group has made a preliminary decision to include Microsoft's video compression technology in a next-generation DVD format, giving the company a key boost in the digital media arena.

The steering committee for the DVD Forum on Friday announced provisional approval for Microsoft's VC-9 and two other video technologies--H.264 and MPEG-2--as mandatory for the HD-DVD specification for playback devices. VC-9 is the reference title for the underlying video decoding technology within Windows Media Video 9. The approval is subject to several conditions, including an update in 60 days of licensing terms and conditions.

The provisional decision "ends months of speculation over whether Microsoft would be endorsed or not," said Richard Doherty, president of media consultancy Envisioneering Group. "It's a good tailwind for Microsoft."


A standards win on DVDs would dramatically buoy Microsoft's ambitions to take its multimedia technology beyond the Internet.

$#%^

Guess this means no open source players for the new generation of DVDs.

[Xeen]

As a audio and video editing hobbyist, and a dvd lover, all I have to say is

                 

[flap]

Why? That's no more a barrier to open source/free software DVD players being written than the current DVD standard is/was.

[WMD]

(1st post)^ Of course not, because the evil hackers are promoting piracy and hurting sales of DVDs and the livelihoods of those who create them.


  :rolleyes:

[ February 27, 2004: Message edited by: WMD ]

[KernelPanic]

quote:Originally posted by flap:
Why? That's no more a barrier to open source/free software DVD players being written than the current DVD standard is/was.

Surely Microosft will be less open with things than the MPEG?

[flap]

The current standard isn't exactly "open" and still had to be cracked, and there still aren't any unambiguously legal free software DVD players.

[Xeen]

quote:Originally posted by flap:
The current standard isn't exactly "open" and still had to be cracked, and there still aren't any unambiguously legal free software DVD players.

Still to be cracked   :confused:  What are you talking about?

[flap]

Jon Johansen, DeCSS... any of this sound familiar?

[KernelPanic]

quote:Originally posted by flap:
Jon Johansen, DeCSS... any of this sound familiar?

Yeh but that isn't the DVD format, CSS was added by providers. Stuff like RevolutionOS doesn't have CSS.

My point was that raw MPEG2 was no likely no big feat to code around but a MS format will be all obfuscated and secretive. It doesnt matter at the end of the day though because whatever format they do finally choose it will be wrapped in hefty DRM with the industry looking back at how easily CSS was cracked.

[flap]

According to that article the specification has been "opened up to developers" - though I don't know if that means it's publicly available.

[Xeen]

quote:Originally posted by flap:
According to that article the specification has been "opened up to developers" - though I don't know if that means it's publicly available.

Doesnt matter. What it really means is no DVD players for Linux.

[flap]

Why does it mean that?

[mobrien_12]

And the saga continues.
Next-generation DVD moves ahead
 

quote:excerpt from the article
 Last week, the DVD Forum steering committee approved version 1.0 of the physical specifications for HD-DVD read-only discs and voted to require that makers of HD-DVD video playback devices build in three video codecs, including the VC-9 technology used in Microsoft's Windows Media Video 9.

The decisions boost Microsoft's efforts in the digital entertainment arena and also advance the HD-DVD technology developed by Toshiba and NEC. HD-DVD, also known as high-definition and high-density DVD, uses blue laser light to cram more information on to discs than today's red-laser DVDs. The technology is vying against the rival Blu-ray format backed by Sony and others, as well as a Chinese format called EVD.

Approval of version 1.0 of the HD-DVD physical specifications gives manufacturers a green light to begin producing devices, said Wolfgang Schlichting, an analyst with researcher IDC.

Screw this.

[Refalm]

Well, go Sony I guess. I hope people will use Sony's standard instead of the WMP standard.

[skyman8081]

This means that WMV9 is free "as in MPEG"

you can see the spec, but you pay moolah to make a working implementation.