Encryption system developer Macrovision has introduced a new
system to stall DVD ripping. The system is a format-based
technology that uses a unique digital framework per title.
RipGuard DVD is verified through a new program offered by THX, a
San Rafael, CA, company that provides quality assurance services
for the entertainment industry.  Macrovision said the RipGuard
DVD could prevent 97 percent of the estimated $1 billion in
annual lost movie industry revenue. RipGuard causes ripper
software to crash or stall, thus preventing it from copying the
content of a DVD. Similar schemes have been used for music CDs
with mixed results; in some cases, protected CDs wouldn't play
in some CD players, which caused consumer uproar in Europe and
slowed to a dribble the introduction of protected discs into the
United States.  For more information, visit www.macrovision.com.
Back to the top