AfterDawn: News

HP urges Blu-Ray group to support more features

The world's second largest PC manufacturer, Hewlett-Packard, has urged the Blu-Ray group to support some technologies that the HD-DVD group have already implemented into the HD-DVD format. This comes after Microsoft and Intel joined the HD-DVD supporters, citing lack of consumer-friendly features in the Blu-Ray format. "We're still supporting Blu-ray but we're very serious that we want these technologies. If in the end, they're supported in one and then not the other, we'll have to make a choice," said Maureen Weber, general manager of personal storage in HP's personal systems group.

The two technologies that HP wants Blu-Ray to support are Mandatory Managed Copy and iHD. Mandatory Managed Copy gives consumers the ability to copy content from the HD disc onto home servers then distribute them around a network. Intel also said it would think about also supporting Blu-Ray if Mandatory Managed Copy were supported. iHD provides new interactive features and will be implemented into Microsoft's next operating system, Windows Vista.



HP said that it wanted to ensure consumers are not forced to choose between competing formats for DVDs. Microsoft applauded HP's move. "We'd like to see Blu-ray do the right thing and commit to these scenarios, avoiding a protracted format war that benefits no one," said spokesman Blair Westlake. The two features HP is pushing for are already supported by Blu-Ray's rival, HD-DVD, developed by Toshiba Corp.

One of the main things that will decide the format war is support from Hollywood. Until recently it was split down the middle with three major studios on Blu-Ray's side and 3 on HD-DVD's side, although Paramount made an announcement in the past few weeks saying that it will produce movies on both format to consumers a choice.

Source:
Reuters

Written by: James Delahunty @ 20 Oct 2005 2:54

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• 7 comments

• Shinraboy

  I spy with my little eye, a battle thats close to betamax.

  20.10.2005 02:59 #1

• kuffain

  just curious, if HP is the second largest PC Manufature, who is the first?

  20.10.2005 06:14 #2

• Mik3h

  Hope DVDJon can crack Blu-Ray. I'd like to see the MPAA's reaction if this is done! Lol >:)
  
  -Mike

  20.10.2005 06:17 #3

• etherz

  DELL is the largest manufacturer in the world, but a chinese company called Lenovo (not sure on spelling) is going to change all that in the next few years, they already make all of IBMs laptops.

  20.10.2005 06:42 #4

• GrayArea

  "Mandatory Managed Copy and iHD"
  "consumer-friendly features" hmmm...
  
  The mandatory managed copy sounds good on the surface. Anything associated with vista is immediately suspect.
  
  I smell a rat. If you just want to be a good little consumer and give them your credit card # each and every time they ask then HD discs may be "consumer-friendly", with the emphasis on CONSUMER. If you are expecting to legally exercise your fair use rights or have any flexability in how you use these products beyond what is dictated by hollywood you will most likely be sadly dissapointed, until they are cracked... ;-)

  20.10.2005 09:12 #5

• cass_71

  OK; So bth formats are designed to prevent copying from legal disc to backup disc. So..... just how long do you suppose it will be before someone (MUCH brighter than I am)"cracks" the copyright encryption and it's all over the net?
  Weeks, months or (gasp!) perhaps, even the same damn'ed day.
  Members of this forum all know that ANY encryption is crackable. It WILL be cracked and we'll be back to the same situation we're in right now!
  I want to make backups of my legally owned movies and games. HD & BlueRay will NOT be able to withstand the concerted efforts of the cracking community!
  These guys, supporting either format may well want to venture to the local sea side and "will" the tide from coming in!
  Enough said, already.

  20.10.2005 12:57 #6

• duckNrun

  Ok..
  
  maybe I got lost... maybe it's the pain meds... maybe I'm just too dumb to know...
  
  Whats this about giving credit card numbers and being good little consumers in regards to managed copy? I didnt, and haven't, read anything of this sort being mentioned anywhere that I have read about MMC.
  
  In terms of fair use this would do more for returning us to the good ole days of legal backups than the world we live in now. Put a copy on my media server? Cool! Share it across my network? Still Cool! This doesnt address, nor do I, the question of burning a legal archived disc, nor of splitting, compressing and editing this disc once it's on the network. Of course what if my network includes a portable device like a laptop or a usb hdd?
  
  So yes, there are still many answers that must be given and no, they probably will not result in the perfect world of freedom to copy whereever, whatever, however and whyever one may want... but it's a step in the right direction.
  
  Sure knowledgeable people will still rip and burn and do what they want anyways. The point is that less knowledgeable people will be able to do more than they can do already! Is it revolution? No. Is it a step in the right direction? Yes!
  
  

  20.10.2005 15:47 #7