p2pnet - rss feed: BitTorrent and The Flintstones
p2pnet.net news:- “Does PC World and/or Harry McCracken have permission from the copyright holder to publish a screenshot of The Flintstones?”
The question is from p2pnet roving reporter catflap in a post to PC World’s test of BitTorrent’s, “new paid, copyright owner-approved TV and movie download service”.
Says McCracken, “I’m sitting here doing something I haven’t done in a long time–watch an episode of The Flintstones,” and to illustrate his point, there’s a pic of Fred and Wilma.
“The BitTorrent Entertainment Network will, in partnership with Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, Paramount, and MGM, offer, “official, entirely legit movies and TV shows,” says a PC World story fromn the day before.
It quotes Associated Press as saying TV shows will sell for $2.00 each, “same as on iTunes,” and movies will rent for $4.00 (new stuff) and $3.00 (old stuff).
And given BT’s partnerships with various elements of the entertainment cartels, everything is loaded to the gills with DRM (Digital Restrictions Management) consumer controls, in this case, Microsoft’s.
Downloads will only play in Windows Media Player 11, and movie rentals will expire 30 days after you buy them, or 24 hours after you start watching.
“I haven’t seen any definitive word on whether you’ll be able to transfer video to other devices, but if so, it’ll presumably only be to ones that support Microsoft DRM,” for which read, “almost everything but the iPod,” adds McCracken.
And the Flintstones pic on the right? From the Wikipedia entry on The Flintstones.
Also See:
PC World - BitTorrent’s New Downloads: Legit But Lame, February 26, 2007
PC World - BitTorrent: Buy, Rent, or Steal?, February 25, 2007
If your Net access is blocked by government restrictions, try Psiphon from the Citizen Lab at thIs the end (of the Net) nigh?zze University of Toronto’s Munk Centre for International Studies. Go here for the official download, here for the p2pnet download, and here for details. And if you’re Chinese and you’re looking for a way to access independent Internet news sources, try Freegate, the DIT program written to help Chinese citizens circumvent web site blocking outside of China. Download it here.
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Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don’t buy their ‘product’. Do bug your local politicians. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you’re into organizing, organize petitions, organize demonstrations and then turn up on your local political rep’s doorstep, making sure you’ve contacted your local tv/radio station/newspaper in advance. Don’t just complain. Do something!
April 5th, 2007 at 8:10 pm
“… it’ll presumably only be to ones that support Microsoft DRM,” for which read, “almost everything but the iPod,” adds McCracken.”
Have fun fighting BUGS in the DRM. I can see it now. You try to watch something you legally paid for on a device you legally own and get an error message. To watch it you’ll need to:
1. Do a Google search to find out what that error message means.
2. Go to the device’s manufacturer and download a new firmware patch and drivers.
3. Install new drivers and reboot.
4. Run Windows update.
5. Reboot.
6. Do a virus scan.
7. Rotate the monitor so it faces North
8. Wiggle the candy dish.
9. Do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around.
No thanks, I’ll just wait for the DRM free version of video. I had a nightmare situation with the .WMA DRM, and this was a LEGAL download. I’ll NEVER trust it again.