A company called Kestrel Wireless is pushing a bit of scary technology: a way to exercise remote control over DVD disks — not players, disks. Kestrel, pushing the idea that 10 to 15 percent of all new-release DVDs in the US are stolen, wants to implant radio chips in each DVD. An "optical shutter" built into the disk will obscure the contents of the DVD until it's turned on at the point of sale. The idea is similar to removing tags from clothing at the cash register: stolen DVDs are useless because they aren't activated.
I find this idea particularly scary — not because it prevents theft, but because it opens the door to abuse. What can be turned on can, obviously, be turned off again. Now imagine how this technology can be used by the MPAA and other villians, using their clout over DVD equipment manufacturers. A new generation of DVD players can also have this radio technology built in. At the time of purchase, the DVD is registered to you as the owner — and if it shows up in anyone else's DVD player, the radio chip disables the DVD, rendering it useless, in order to prevent "theft" of the DVD's content. While this all remains hypothetical, it's a scenario consistent with the MPAA's constant efforts to redefine the meaning of ownership (to the MPAA's advantage).
Topics: · business · intellectual+property
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