[Infowarrior] - iTunes customers angry over DRM

[Richard Forno]

  November 19, 2008 5:57 PM PST
iTunes customers angry over copy protection moves at Apple
Posted by Elinor Mills

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10103284-37.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20

Want to watch a high-definition show from iTunes on an older external  
display? Good luck!

Some Mac users are teed off that they are getting error messages  
saying the iTunes movie they rented or bought can't be played on their  
display because it is not HDCP (High Digital Content Protection)  
authorized.

And some people are complaining they are only able to play certain  
standard definition iTunes content on their laptop or via an HDMI  
connection.

As a result, some Apple forum participants have threatened to boycott  
iTunes.

"And here we are now with Apple users who have spent thousands of  
dollars on Apple hardware (30" Cinema displays are not cheap!), buying  
films legitimately through Apple's store only to find themselves  
screwed when they just want to watch the film!" wrote "non-troppo" on  
the Apple Discussions Forum.

Forum participant Jim Beggans complained that Apple expanded the usage  
limitations of iTunes without updating the published usage terms.

"It is imperative that Apple address this customer concern with NEW  
terms of service (which will require them to offer some remedy for  
existing purchases) and clarify that HDCP is a now a standard part of  
their products regardless of which mode of the DisplayPort is in use,"  
he Beggans wrote.

ArsTechnica, which first covered the issue, reports that Apple's new  
MacBook is using DPCP, or DisplayPort Content Protection, which was  
developed by Philips.

The Mini DisplayPort connector used on Apple's new MacBooks and  
MacBook Pros uses DPCP to prevent iTunes files from being played on  
devices that are not compliant with either DPCP or HDCP, a copy- 
protection technology used with the HDMI standard. DPCP supports the  
HDCP technology, but is considered a stronger level of encryption  
according to the Video Electronics Standard Association (click for  
PDF) .

"While Apple's own Apple TV has used HDCP to protect video files  
playing from its HDMI port, this is the first time we've heard of  
Apple bringing HDCP DPCP to its hardware," David Chartier writes on  
ArsTechnica.

Basically, Apple is moving forward with a new standard that is not  
compatible with older displays. In the past, Apple has shown a  
willingness to forge ahead with new technology that doesn't always  
play nice with the older stuff, and the decision to use the Mini  
DisplayPort connector on the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros ensured  
that DPCP and HDCP would come along for the ride.

"Apple's compliance with HDCP -- a necessary but appalling condition  
of the content companies that deliver the HD movies and TV shows -- is  
beginning to close out the 'analog hole' and cause real aggravation  
for laptop owners with legitimate use cases, writes Michael Rose on  
The Unofficial Apple Weblog site.

Andy Foster sums the situation up on his Computer Blog: "In other  
words, the only way any of us can guarantee we can play the stuff we  
buy that is HD is to ensure we have the newest in hardware."

What does Apple have to say for itself? We don't know and likely  
won't. Apple representatives did not return repeated phone calls and e- 
mails seeking comment over two days.

(CNET News' Tom Krazit contributed to this report.)