Wize Blog

What is DRM?

Digital Rights Management is supposed to be a platform "to protect and deliver content," according to the Microsoft Web site. In effect, some say Digital Rights Management keeps users from accessing movies and music.

DRM is the reason you can't download movies from Netflix on a Mac.

According to a January post about Mac streaming from Netflix, MacRumors.com states:  "A key issue for delivering movies online is that the studios require use of DRM (Digital Rights Management) to protect titles. There's not yet a studio-sanctioned, publicly-available Mac DRM solution (Apple doesn't license theirs)."

And so it goes...Netflix states on it's site that only PCs can be used to stream or download movies from its site.

"You must have a computer running Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or higher, or Windows Vista; Internet Explorer version 6 or higher; Windows Media Player version 11 or higher; an active broadband connection to the Internet; 1.0 GHz processor; 512 MB RAM; 3 GB free hard disk drive space."

Stream may come soon, though, from Microsoft's Silverlight video technology, which will support both Mac and PC platforms.

News of Set-Top Boxes and HD-DVD players

The news is filled with companies coming to terms with how movies are distributed.

Blockbuster is getting ready to announce (according to the Hollywood Reporter) that it will come out with a movie player to compete with Apple TV (rated 89 at wize.com). This is big news not because of how the movies will be delivered, but because Blockbuster has an enormous movie library.

Currently there is a small selection of set-tops. You can see how they measure up here.

Now that the HD-DVD format is dead (Blu-ray won the format war), retailers are giving rebates to those who chose the dinosaur player. Amazon's giving a coupon that's good for $50 worth of purchases at the company's Web site.

It's anybody's guess where the technology is going, but I'll bet you won't see high definition players on the market much longer. It's my guess that the set-top boxes will win out over Blu-ray players as the number one way to get movies delivered to your television set.

Download Adobe Media Player

Watch out Windows Media Player, RealPlayer, and  iTunes, Adobe Media Player has arrived. You can download the media player right now. The media player can be used in Windows and Mac OS X operating systems. I've posted the system requirements below.

Everything is "on demand" with the media player and there's no need to open your browser.

You can check out what the media player is all about by watching a video that Adobe has made available on their site.

System Requirements

Windows
Intel® Pentium® 4 2.33GHz or faster processor
Microsoft® Windows® XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista® Home, Business, or Ultimate
1GB of RAM and 64MB of VRAM

Mac OS (PowerPC)
PowerPC® G5 1.8GHz or faster processor
Mac OS X v10.4.9–10.4.11 or 10.5.1–10.5.2
1GB of RAM and 64MB of VRAM

Mac OS (Intel)
Intel Core™ Duo 1.33GHz or faster processor
Mac OS X v10.4.9–10.4.11 or 10.5.1–10.5.2
1GB of RAM and 64MB of VRAM

Sony's GV-HD700E HD Video Walkman Is for Filmmakers

Released last November, the Sony GV-HD700E HD Video Walkman is the first video player of its kind. The player can play those mini-DV tapes, letting filmmakers see their work immediately out in the field.

The 7 inch LCD screen has a scan function that lets users see the video's image in its entirety.  The device has a HDMI output, which lets users connect it to a high definition television set.

The unit isn't cheap. Yahoo Shopping has it at $1,300 to $1,432.

Its ability to record HDV1080i/DV signals from an external source makes it good for a back-up deck for professional videographers covering events.

HD DVD or Blu-ray?

What's next for movie watchers in the next generation of movie players? Right now there's only one standard for all movies--the DVD.

There are two formats that are competing to be the next generation standard for viewing movies--HD DVD and Blu-ray.

Both offer great movie watching experiences.

No one really knows which one will win out to be the one everybody uses, it's up to the movie studios to decide.

HD DVD

DreamWorks' "Shrek the Third" and Universal's "Transformers" are only available in the HD DVD format.

HD DVD players cost less and start at about $250.

XBox 360 supports HD DVD (with an attachment).

Blu-ray

Sony's "Spider-Man 3" and Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" are only available in Blu-ray.

Blu-ray players start at $400, more than HD DVD.

Sony's PlayStation 3 supports Blu-ray.

Source for this post is New York Daily News.