#76 Clash of the
Titans (Notes from CES and MacWorld) This year in three overstuffed,
stress filled days the Titans of the industry held court on stage in two
different cities – Las Vegas and San Francisco. Imagine the dynamics
of it all. Members of the media had to decide how to best cover the three
who would shape the coming year and possibly the future – Gary Shapiro,
CEA; Bill Gates, Microsoft; Steve Jobs, Apple. ….
The Content Insider
Andy Marken is president of Marken Communications and has been involved in the marketing of storage technology for more than 15 years. His experience includes work with Panasonic, Verbatim, Matsushita, Plasmon, Nikon, Mitsubishi Chemical and a number of hard drive manufacturers. Andy can be reached at andy@markencom.com.
Life in Black and
White (Under 40? You Probably Won't Understand!)You could hardly see
for all the snow,
Spread the rabbit ears as far as they go.
Pull a chair up to the TV set,
"Good Night, David. Good Night, Chet."
Andy reminisces about "the good old days". ….
Spread the rabbit ears as far as they go.
Pull a chair up to the TV set,
"Good Night, David. Good Night, Chet."
Andy reminisces about "the good old days". ….
#75 Everything,
Everywhere Home Network…As Close As Your Lab Despite the fact
that DVD players have finally surpassed VCRs in the U.S., industry
players see silver disc sales declining. Why? Well Dr. Waldman, everyone
knows! People are suddenly going to change over and join the video on demand
(VoD) and pay-for-view society. What is even better for the PC/CE industry
is the fact that they will build out their home networks so they can watch
their content anywhere in the house ….
The Longest Suicide
Note in History The Vista Content Protection specification could very
well constitute the longest suicide note in history. [...]
Vista's content protection mechanism only allows protected content to be sent over interfaces that also have content- protection facilities built in. Currently the most common high- end audio output interface is S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format). Most newer audio cards, for example, feature TOSlink digital optical output for high-quality sound reproduction, and even the latest crop of motherboards with integrated audio provide at least coax (and often optical) digital output. Since S/PDIF doesn't provide any content protection, Vista requires that it be disabled when playing protected content. In other words if you've invested a pile of money into a high-end audio setup fed from a digital output, you won't be able to use it with protected content. Similarly, component (YPbPr) video will be disabled by Vista's content protection, so the same applies to a high-end video setup fed from component video. [...]
Alongside the all-or-nothing approach of disabling output, Vista requires that any interface that provides high-quality output degrade the signal quality that passes through it. This is done through a "constrictor" that downgrades the signal to a much lower-quality one, then up-scales it again back to the original spec, but with a significant loss in quality. So if you're using an expensive new LCD display fed from a high-quality DVI signal on your video card and there's protected content present, the picture you're going to see will be, as the spec puts it, "slightly fuzzy", a bit like a 10-year-old CRT monitor that you picked up for $2 at a yard sale [Note C].
Note C includes: "In order for content to be displayed to users, it has to be copied numerous times. .... Windows Vista's content protection (and DRM in general) assume that all of this copying can occur without any copying actually occurring, since the whole intent of DRM is to prevent copying. .... So in order for Windows Vista's content protection to work, it has to be able to violate the laws of physics and create numerous copies that are simultaneously not copies."
In fact the spec specifically still allows for old VGA analog outputs, but even that's only because disallowing them would upset too many existing owners of analog monitors. In the future even analog VGA output will probably have to be disabled. The only thing that seems to be explicitly allowed is the extremely low-quality TV-out, provided that Macrovision is applied to it. The same deliberate degrading of playback quality applies to audio, with the audio being downgraded to sound (from the spec) "fuzzy with less detail" [Note D]. Amusingly, the Vista content protection docs say that it'll be left to graphics chip manufacturers to differentiate their product based on (deliberately degraded) video quality. This seems a bit like breaking the legs of Olympic athletes and then rating them based on how fast they can hobble on crutches. [...]
In July 2006, Cory Doctorow published an analysis of the anti- competitive nature of Apple's iTunes copy-restriction system ("Apple's Copy Protection Isn't Just Bad For Consumers, It's Bad For Business", Cory Doctorow, Information Week, 31 July 2006). The only reason I can imagine why Microsoft would put its programmers, device vendors, third-party developers, and ultimately its customers, through this much pain is because once this copy protection is entrenched, Microsoft will completely own the distribution channel. In the same way that Apple has managed to acquire a monopolistic lock-in on their music distribution channel (an example being the Motorola ROKR fiasco, which was so crippled by Apple-imposed restrictions that it was dead the moment it appeared), so Microsoft will totally control the premium- content distribution channel. Not only will they be able to lock out any competitors, but because they will then represent the only available distribution channel they'll be able to dictate terms back to the content providers whose needs they are nominally serving in the same way that Apple has already dictated terms back to the music industry: Play by Apple's rules, or we won't carry your content. The result will be a technologically enforced monopoly that makes their current de-facto Windows monopoly seem like a velvet glove in comparison. [...]
Here's an offer to Microsoft: If we, the consumers, promise to never, ever, ever buy a single HD-DVD or Blu-Ray disc containing any precious premium content [Note K], will you in exchange withhold this poison from the computer industry? Please? ….
Vista's content protection mechanism only allows protected content to be sent over interfaces that also have content- protection facilities built in. Currently the most common high- end audio output interface is S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format). Most newer audio cards, for example, feature TOSlink digital optical output for high-quality sound reproduction, and even the latest crop of motherboards with integrated audio provide at least coax (and often optical) digital output. Since S/PDIF doesn't provide any content protection, Vista requires that it be disabled when playing protected content. In other words if you've invested a pile of money into a high-end audio setup fed from a digital output, you won't be able to use it with protected content. Similarly, component (YPbPr) video will be disabled by Vista's content protection, so the same applies to a high-end video setup fed from component video. [...]
Alongside the all-or-nothing approach of disabling output, Vista requires that any interface that provides high-quality output degrade the signal quality that passes through it. This is done through a "constrictor" that downgrades the signal to a much lower-quality one, then up-scales it again back to the original spec, but with a significant loss in quality. So if you're using an expensive new LCD display fed from a high-quality DVI signal on your video card and there's protected content present, the picture you're going to see will be, as the spec puts it, "slightly fuzzy", a bit like a 10-year-old CRT monitor that you picked up for $2 at a yard sale [Note C].
Note C includes: "In order for content to be displayed to users, it has to be copied numerous times. .... Windows Vista's content protection (and DRM in general) assume that all of this copying can occur without any copying actually occurring, since the whole intent of DRM is to prevent copying. .... So in order for Windows Vista's content protection to work, it has to be able to violate the laws of physics and create numerous copies that are simultaneously not copies."
In fact the spec specifically still allows for old VGA analog outputs, but even that's only because disallowing them would upset too many existing owners of analog monitors. In the future even analog VGA output will probably have to be disabled. The only thing that seems to be explicitly allowed is the extremely low-quality TV-out, provided that Macrovision is applied to it. The same deliberate degrading of playback quality applies to audio, with the audio being downgraded to sound (from the spec) "fuzzy with less detail" [Note D]. Amusingly, the Vista content protection docs say that it'll be left to graphics chip manufacturers to differentiate their product based on (deliberately degraded) video quality. This seems a bit like breaking the legs of Olympic athletes and then rating them based on how fast they can hobble on crutches. [...]
In July 2006, Cory Doctorow published an analysis of the anti- competitive nature of Apple's iTunes copy-restriction system ("Apple's Copy Protection Isn't Just Bad For Consumers, It's Bad For Business", Cory Doctorow, Information Week, 31 July 2006). The only reason I can imagine why Microsoft would put its programmers, device vendors, third-party developers, and ultimately its customers, through this much pain is because once this copy protection is entrenched, Microsoft will completely own the distribution channel. In the same way that Apple has managed to acquire a monopolistic lock-in on their music distribution channel (an example being the Motorola ROKR fiasco, which was so crippled by Apple-imposed restrictions that it was dead the moment it appeared), so Microsoft will totally control the premium- content distribution channel. Not only will they be able to lock out any competitors, but because they will then represent the only available distribution channel they'll be able to dictate terms back to the content providers whose needs they are nominally serving in the same way that Apple has already dictated terms back to the music industry: Play by Apple's rules, or we won't carry your content. The result will be a technologically enforced monopoly that makes their current de-facto Windows monopoly seem like a velvet glove in comparison. [...]
Here's an offer to Microsoft: If we, the consumers, promise to never, ever, ever buy a single HD-DVD or Blu-Ray disc containing any precious premium content [Note K], will you in exchange withhold this poison from the computer industry? Please? ….
#74 In the DRM,
CA Equation, Someone Has to Protect the Consumer For thousands of years
people looked the other way as folks made copies of other people’s
work – by hand, by printing press, by copier, by disc. Content producers
weren’t happy but the U.S. Supreme Court determined there was such
a thing as fair use – making a backup copy of content for yourself.
That was loosely interpreted to mean you could make a backup
copy of your videotape. You could make a copy of an audio tape to CD so you
could play on your personal player, in the car, or ….
#73 The Swiss Army
Phone…Is Good Enough for Everything Good Enough?Sometimes our
kids – and the community at large – make us feel like Tom Hanks
in the 2004 The Terminal. We simply go from gate to gate trying
to get on the next technology plane to fly to our destination…optimum
personal and business productivity. We haven’t even installed Vista
-- probably wait until quite a few folks fly that plane before
we get on board!! We have a new cellphone with a camera as well
as network and messaging capabilities. Phone works great. Haven’t bothered
reading the passenger instructions in the seatback for the rest of the marvelous
features…we
figure we’ll
just get airsick...
#72 Short Game,
Long Game, No Game…Gone in 60 Sec.While videogame boxes have been
a yawn for 60+% of the population in the Americas for the past year. For
the rest? They are the “A” list of lust. For MS, Sony and Nintendo
the Xbox, PS3 and Wii are about percentage points. And bragging rights…serious
bragging rights! But Sony drew the line in the sand. They said…”the
console war doesn’t start till we say so…” Like Nicholas
Cage in Gone saying he was going to steal 50 cars in one night. Great chest
thumpin’ but who cares? ...
#71 Content Battles…Galadriel
Holds Middle EarthThe hardware, software, content creators and deliverers
could learn a lot by studying The Lord of the Rings trilogy. As Legolas said, “The
horses are restless, and the men are quiet.” If we stretch the literal
portions of the Fellowship of the Ring there are three “layers” of
Earth – Upper, Middle, Lower. The content Earth? - Upper - professional – Tellywood,
videographers, prosumers – serious dollars - Middle - home/personal – family
and personal consumer -- memories - Lower - teens/tweens – disposable,
impulse, casual – Yoohh! Shakin !! ...
#70 The Digital
Home – Something’s Gotta GiveFeeling a little tired lately?
Spending less time watching TV? Wonder how you’re going to absorb it
all? Well…Yes…Yes…we’ll email you on that. If
it’s any consolation, you’re not alone. The beauty of today’s
content sources is that they are always on, always available,
always sending stuff to you. According to a study by Yahoo! that’s
also the ugly underbelly of today’s rapidly changing technology. Their
findings, based on responses from people around the globe, are that we are
either mastering the demands of multitasking or we have changed the time/space
continuum...
#69 Shrinking
Storage…Keeping Data Safe, Close At HandIn observance of the hard
drive’s 50th anniversary, we cajoled our
kids into visiting the computer museum in San Jose. Seemed
like an interesting way to get them to understand the technology
that has impregnated their lives.
We unplugged our son’s MP3 player white earbuds.
Made him leave his PSP at home.
Turned off our daughter’s cellphone…no IMing. Other than
the sheer size, they were totally unimpressed with the world’s first
hard drive -- the IBM RAMAC (Random Access Memory for Accounting
and Control) drive...
#68 Web 2.0 – Thunder…Lightning…RainFrom
its innocent beginning in the early ‘80s the Internet has grown
into an indispensable part of our personal and professional
lives. As bandwidth spread around the globe it fostered a new industry…the
Web. This gave rise to heroes, billionaires, industry leaders…wholesale
disasters. The second generation Web cloud is being seeded
by VC and M&A funds
as lavishly as before. VCs have war chests stuffed with over $15
billion investing in anything with social media in its name.
Media conglomerates are throwing big money at young kids to
have a stake in the new media environment...
#67 IPTV – Who
Will Make Money Off The Matrix
"A déjà vu is usually a glitch in the Matrix.
It happens when they change something," (Trinity in the
1999 movie The Matrix).
The Internet Matrix emerged in the late '80s with three struggling internet
service providers (ISPs) serving researchers, educators and
a few business people. It enjoyed spectacular growth.
Morpheus and Neo sat there just enjoying the success !!!
The Internet's Matrix 2 came in the '90s with more excitement, more money
than people could imagine. The death of many of the stars
was painful.and
expensive.
With the slow, struggling emergence of IPTV the third remake
is here...
Saving, Sharing Videos on CD
Most of today's computers have the power and capacity to
support video pro-duction. Digital camcorders are available
with FireWire connectivity that simplifies downloading video
to personal com-puters. Economical and user-friendly per-sonal
video production tools have become widely available. When
you record DVD-quality MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 video on a CD, it can be played
on virtually any DVD-ROM drive or DVD player as well as computer-based
CD-ROM drives. Products like NTI's CD & DVD
Maker 7 Titanium, InterVideo DVD Copy 5, Ulead MovieMaker
5, Roxio Easy CD as well as a number of the video production
tools, make it fast and easy to copy your videos onto CD-R
and CD-RW media...
The
Ripping World of CD and MP3Now that the issues of copyright protection appear
to have finally been put to rest, the MP3 world is moving faster
than the average music lover can keep up. Whether you're a serious
music collector, are looking for a new genre of music to enjoy, or just want
to see if you can catch a musician before he or she hits stardom, the Web
is the place to visit. Thanks to the technology
of audio compression, the global reach of the Internet and the rapid growth
of on-line music sites, it's now possible to preview a wide range of music
and select the songs you enjoy...
Understanding Double
Layer DVD RecordingDouble Layer DVD recordable discs offer up to four
hours of high quality MPEG-2 video, or up to 8.5GB of data on a single sided
disc with two individual recordable “layers”. Double Layer capable
recorders will have the ability to record on the new Double Layer DVD recordable
discs as well as traditional single layer DVD discs and CDs too. Want more?
Because a re-corded Double Layer DVD disc is com-pliant to the DVD9 specification,
the discs are compatible with most consumer DVD players and computer DVD-ROM
drives already installed in the market....
Double Layer DVD+R
MediaAlthough Double Layer 8.5GB DVD-ROM and DVD video discs have been
available for some time as part of the DVD read-only standard,
it was thought impossible or at least improbable that a similar
technology could be developed for personal DVD recording. However, Mitsubishi
Kagaku Media (MKM), parent company of Verbatim Corporation, and Philips have
recently proven that a Dou-ble Layer DVD recording system is feasible utilizing
the DVD+R (write-once) format...
