Copying HD DVD & Blu-ray Discs May Become Legal

by Marco Chiappetta — Thursday, May 24, 2007, 11:00 AM EDT

Apparently, a new licensing agreement is being finalized that could make it legal for consumers who have already purchased a HD DVD or Blu-Ray disc to make a bakcup copy...

"Under a licensing agreement in its final stages, consumers may get the right to make several legal copies of HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc movies they’ve purchased, a concession by the movie industry that may quell criticism that DRM (digital rights management) technologies are too restrictive.

The agreement, if supported by movie studios and film companies, could allow a consumer to make a backup copy in case their original disc is damaged and another copy for their home media server, said Michael Ayers, a representative of an industry group that licenses the AACS (Advanced Access Content System) copy-prevention system."

Legally or not, these movies are going to get copied one way or another. Of course, leave it to the movie industry to figure out a way to charge more for something that should already be legal under the fair use guidelines.

Tags: HD, Blu-ray, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, Legal, eco, HD DVD, Disc, copy, Yi, blu, ray, COM

Marco Chiappetta

Marco's interest in computing and technology dates all the way back to his early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the Commodore 64 in the early ‘80s, he was interested in electricity and electronics, and he still has the modded AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once he got his hands on his own Commodore 64, however, computing became Marco's passion. Throughout his academic and professional lives, Marco has worked with virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today's high end, multi-core servers. Over the years, he has worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, professional quality assurance testing, and technical writing. In addition to being the Managing Editor here at HotHardware for close to 15 years, Marco is also a freelance writer whose work has been published in a number of PC and technology related print publications and he is a regular fixture on HotHardware’s own Two and a Half Geeks webcast. - Contact: marco(at)hothardware(dot)com