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What Mac users need to know about HDCP and DisplayPort

Monday, December 8, 2008 · 12:20 pm · 29 Comments

“Steve Jobs told us during the unibody Macbook keynote that Apple will integrate DisplayPort in all Mac hardware down the road, but he forgot to mention out that HDCP is part of the deal,” Christian Zibreg reports for TG Daily.

“Developed by Intel, HDCP stands for ‘High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection’ and is generally viewed as the movie industry’s insurance policy against mass piracy of HD movies on Blu-ray media. Blu-ray playback requires a chain of HDCP-equipped devices, including an HDCP graphics card and HDCP monitor. But since we know that Apple will not adopt Blu-ray, why would Apple need HDCP? Some believe Hollywood is forcing Apple to integrate HDCP into iTunes content,” Zibreg reports.

“Indeed, Hollywood will likely not allow HD movie streaming or purchase on anything beyond Apple TV until Apple transitions the entire Mac lineup towards a DisplayPort+HDCP environment.”

Full article – recommended – here.

MacDailyNews Take: DRM only inconveniences paying customers while the thieves just laugh, strip it off, and resume pirating.

“It’s better to be a pirate than to join the Navy.” – Steve Jobs

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Comment Feed

29 Comments

« Previous 1 2

Gregg Thurman

Monday, December 8, 2008 - 7:07 pm · Reply

This is the first intelligent discussion I have seen in about 5 years of MDN viewing. My congrats to those that participated.

Still, my point is that DRM has always existed. Having to replace technologies has always existed. Changing formats has always existed.

Most music was originally record as mono 78 RPM vinyl. That became 45s, then stereo 33 1/3 albums. The playback technology changed, and the DRM was in the fact that the ‘record’ couldn’t be copied (at least not without concerted illegal efforts).

Then came magnetic tape which led to 8 track cartridges. Again not easily copied. Cassettes made vinyl obsolete and could be copied (stolen?), but still the industry sold millions.

But then came the internet and digital music. Copying was never easier, and for the first time music sales declined. The only complaints about DRM today, come from those that want to do more than the owners of the content imagined, or could easily be managed with effective copy protection. The problem isn’t DRM, its the flexibility/capabilities that digital technology gives us. Figure out how the content producers can protect their intellectual property rights, and give legitimate owners of that content the flexibility they want, and I guarantee that you’ll be richer than Bill Gates.

Until then some are going to be inconvenienced, but that digital music sales now account for over half the music sold, that number isn’t very high.
dave

Monday, December 8, 2008 - 8:04 pm · Reply

HDCP is embedded in HDMI as well. Tell the owners with TV’s that use the original HDMI 1.0 spec, that were told they had to buy a new TV because some newer HDMI source device used HDMI 1.3, and didn’t work right with v1.0.

And wait for when 2010, or 2011, when the ‘analog’ high-def hole is defined to be arbitrarily closed (as now, you can output hi-def signals as unprotected analog). Some HD TV’s only have analog inputs, which will suddenly stop working (well, the ports will work, you just won’t have anything that will send it a signal).

And in the name of ‘protecting their revenue stream’, the movie industry wants to use part of HDCP to disable your PVR and analog outputs NOW, in the name of releasing movies to TV earlier.
G4Dualie

Monday, December 8, 2008 - 10:45 pm · Reply

This is the first intelligent discussion I have seen in about 5 years of MDN viewing.

@Gregg

Agreed. The exchange provided plenty of food for thought.

If Reality Check had checked in sooner, I’ve no doubt the conversation would have devolved into chaos after the third post.
Darkfire

Monday, December 8, 2008 - 10:51 pm · Reply

@For Pete’s Sake!
Sorry, wrong.
My neighbor’s iMac didn’t have an internet connection for two weeks after she got it, we worked just fine.
The most EFI does is limit modding/OCing, and a company figured out how to do that much with Mac Pros and Xserves awhile back.

Apple doesn’t like people messing with their things, and so has always made it a bit of a pain (from kinda-sorta to unbearable) to get one open, all the way back to the Apple II.
iDon't

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - 1:15 am · Reply

I hate DMR because I keep forgetting the passwords.
Dave

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - 2:19 am · Reply

Can we have Blue Ray without movie playing capabilities. You know, for backing up data.
The real problem with drm

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - 2:27 am · Reply

DRM becomes obsolete… and we the consumer are left out in the cold. We don’t own anything anymore. “Buy it again” like 8-tracks vinyl and cassettes except with those, we could put it in our yard and sell it used.
G4Dualie

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - 10:27 pm · Reply

Comment from: Reality Check

@G4Dualie: In fact, I think the thread was progressing reasonably until exactly the point that you posted your irrelevant insult. Think about it.

Think? I did precisely that. I called it baked the moment I broke in. All of the salient points were made hours beforehand anyway.

I was commending Gregg for kick-starting the party along with the most thoughtful for their wit and insight. I acknowledged you because your implied persona is what ushered in my post.

I am convinced that had you been anywhere near a computer when this thread broke out we would have been witness to comments that serve only to undermine your title.

I’m willing to give you the benefit of the doubt though if yours is a Zune-Tang-like performance. If your act is to play a retarded Reality checker then fine, I’ll respect that. However, if Reality is your cross to bear then stop being arbitrary and focus your energy on being more precise.

If it is not an act, then you cannot be the first to post. Really.

Reality devoid of imagination can’t be expected to comment until everyone else has spoken. Also, get a sense of humor, quick. Because Reality Check should be rich with laughter summoned from thoughts evolving from dreamy gray matter.

You realize you risk not being heard from again, don’t you?

Cheers!
Justin P. Reese

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 - 11:08 pm · Reply

Blu-Ray is nothing more than corporate hype. Consequently, so was HD-DVD.

They’re just discs with high capacity so they can hold 1920×1080 pixel content. That’s it.

Boo-freaking-hoo.