Sunday, July 17, 2005
Microsoft Courts Hollywood Allies
Microsoft Courts Hollywood Allies: "Perhaps the most significant fruit emerged a year ago with the formation of a group that is close to finishing a rights-management system for high-definition video. Backers of the Advanced Access Content System, known as AACS, include tech firms Microsoft, Intel Corp. and IBM Corp.; media companies Warner Bros. and Disney; and consumer electronics companies Panasonic, Toshiba and Sony, which also makes movies.
Microsoft digital media chief Amir Majidimehr said AACS, which uses pieces of technology from Microsoft and other companies, would allow some content to be moved around within a home network, such as from a computer to a television.
The system would also allow the AACS group to reach into the house and change software if the system got hacked to produce unauthorized copies. That's a level of control rarely seen before the latest video game consoles.
But such control may alienate customers, analysts warn. Indeed, some consumer advocates complain that Microsoft is giving veto power over new technology to the risk-averse entertainment industry. Especially disturbing, they say, is the idea of buying a device that does something, only to have a piece of restricted content disable that feature later with a forced software 'upgrade.'
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Microsoft digital media chief Amir Majidimehr said AACS, which uses pieces of technology from Microsoft and other companies, would allow some content to be moved around within a home network, such as from a computer to a television.
The system would also allow the AACS group to reach into the house and change software if the system got hacked to produce unauthorized copies. That's a level of control rarely seen before the latest video game consoles.
But such control may alienate customers, analysts warn. Indeed, some consumer advocates complain that Microsoft is giving veto power over new technology to the risk-averse entertainment industry. Especially disturbing, they say, is the idea of buying a device that does something, only to have a piece of restricted content disable that feature later with a forced software 'upgrade.'
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