Why Are Movie Studios So F%&king Stupid?
Last week I picked up a copy of Zack and Miri Make a Porno on Blu-ray. Part of me really wanted to see it, being a bit of a Kevin Smith fan, but part of me was just intrigued by the big sticker on the front that said “INCLUDES DIGITAL COPY”. It was the first movie I’d seen that sticker on ever, so I desperately wanted to discover what the digital copy was like. Turns out, it’s a clusterf%&k of complete failure that could only have been thought up by demons in the seventh level of Hell.
The notion of having a digital copy of the movie included with a Blu-ray makes perfect sense to me. If I want to watch the film on my Full HD plasma with surround sound, then I’ll pop in the Blu-ray disc. But sometimes you just want to watch a movie on the train or while your wife watches some crappy reality TV program, so a digital copy you can play on your PC or iPod is perfect. I rip all my DVDs for this reason, but ripping Blu-rays is just a little bit too time consuming to be worth it.
Yet the digital copy solution on offer is even less worth it, especially if you pick up the movie thinking that this is a feature. For a start, it’s PC only. Sure, that may not seem like an issue to the 90% of people who use Windows, but considering that the only warning you get is a URL on the “INCLUDES DIGITAL COPY” sticker that directs you to system requirements, it kind of sucks if you’re a Mac or Linux user. The FAQs on the disc even have a question about this:
Is it also possible to use Digital Copy with Mac OS X?
Digital Copy is available for Windows XP (Home/Professional/Media Center Edition) with SP2 or Windows Vista.
So I guess that’s a no? Why not just say “No”? And then there’s the irony that a movie which stars Justin Long, iPhones and an old G3 iBook has a digital copy that won’t work on Apple products. But I digress…
If you do have a PC and want to copy the digital version to your PC, you simply insert the extra disc that comes inside the case, follow the prompts, enter a special authorisation code and then you can watch the movie. Or so they say. When you read the restrictions on the film thanks to the DRM, you really have to wonder why the studio even bothered in the first place.
You can only have the digital copy on one computer at a time. Sure, that sounds fair enough – it reduces piracy and all that. If you want to move the file to another PC, you need to delete it and reactivate it. Problem is, there’s a limit on the number of times you can do that, so logic says that if you replace your PC too many times, you’ll lose the right to install the digital copy you purchased onto your PC.
And of course, the DRM WMV file means that you can’t get it to play on your iPod or iPhone, and probably not any other portable device either.
It really makes you wonder about just how ridiculously stupid the decision makers at these movie studios really are. I’m more than happy to pay for a movie, especially when it comes to Blu-ray. But by being so draconian in their management of digital copies – something I consider I purchased alongside the Blu-ray disc – they will drive more and more people to piracy.
Why not cater to everyone with OS-agnostic versions? Even if you want to stick with WMV, offer an MP4 version for Mac (and iPod/iPhone) users as well. So long as downloading a torrent is easier and more flexible than using the official channel, these studios don’t have a hope in hell of beating piracy.
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Comments
Epic Fail. It’s just like my mates hot sister who became a Nun.
That’s some bad luck there Nick.
I have had maybe 4-5 Blu-rays that included a digital copy, and they have had Digital Copies that have been redeemed through the iTunes store (so they work on Mac and PC). Some have even had both options (one iTunes redeption, one WMV DRM’ed file).
I think it depends on the studio.
I’d be fascinated to know what the films are – and whether they’re Australian or US versions…
My copy of The Day The Earth Stood Still had a digital copy (though it didn’t mention it anywhere and I found the second disc hidden behind the Blu-Ray). It was activated via your choice of WMP or iTunes.
For convenience sake, I went with iTunes as I have both a MacBook and a Dell XPS.
Shoulda clarified: I buy all my Blurays from Amazon.com so they are region free. Some ones off the top of my head (don’t have them in front of me) are Dark Night, Hellboy 2, and Traitor.
region free should say region A. Doh.
I have one Blu-Ray that came with a digital copy, and extra disc actually has 3 movie files on it. One WMV, and two MP4 – one for full screen, and one preformatted for smaller portable (iPod) screens.
Ignoring the ultra-restrictive DRM, this seems fairly reasonable.
I don’t recall which movie it is, I’ll have to check when I get home tonight.
Do let me know what film it was. This sounds like a fairly reasonable way of dealing with it, unlike the solution on Zack and Miri…
Its all based on which studio produces which disk.
Some of the studios have bought in to the itunes redeem code (meaning it is also mac compatible), some have not.
Totally agree with everyone here – its a typical failed solution that just makes things more confusing – they can’t even agree on a solution (just like HD DVD v Bluray all over again).
Greedy intransigent – will get exactly what they deserve (just like the music industry).
Either I was imagining things, or I can’t find the one I was looking for. But I can tell you that “The Day the Earth Stood Still” gives you a full screen and a portable version. Both are WMV format, but according to the instuctions they’re redeemable via iTunes on both mac and pc.
I just ordered the Directors Cut of Watchmen through Amazon, I am really hoping it is redeemable via iTunes not wmv.
Watchmen Digital Copy is iTunes compatible. Actually, it’s both as I recall. I redeemed with iTunes on my Mac. Hassle free! It’s also a really big file 2+ GB for the theatrical version. Somewhat disappointed that it’s not the Director’s Cut, but whatcha gonna do?
Becasue OSX has only 4% of computer market they are providing the digital option for the platform with the most market share… and considering there is no DRM that will work on windows and OSX then they had to pick one… I call this a OSX fail and if you dont like it then use boot camp and load Windows 7 on you Mac…
First up, Fairplay works on Windows & OS X, so your argument is invalid immediately.
Second, you’re saying that it’s an OS X fail that that this movie studio isn’t providing a compatible format for the iPod, most popular media player in the market? The one that has > 75% of the market?
This is not a OS issue. This is an issue that the studio in question is still using an antiquated DRM scheme (presumably PlaysForSure) that not even Microsoft themselves are still using.
iTunes runs on both Windows and Mac, as does the Fairplay DRM that it uses for it’s video purchases and rentals. So that blows your argument out of the water altogether mate.
Al got a smackdown! Al got a smackdown!
I call this DRM fail. Pirated copies at blu-ray resolution will always be available easily. DRMing the digital copy will not make the slightest shred of difference to the speed at which pirated versions are propagated. The only thing DRM does is annoy the hell out of the consumer and highlight once again just how far behind the times most media companies are.
I could not take this copy and put it on my NAS to be played back by my XBMC media centre, for example. If I buy it, I want my media available to all my devices all the time at any time. I don’t want to put up with FBI warnings about piracy when I’m a legit purchaser – pirated copies strip those out anyway.
Media companies will only begin to ‘win’ the war against piracy when they realise that their efforts to stymie it are driving people TO piracy rather than from it.
this seems like an ominous warning about what digital distribution is going to be like when “it inevitably overtakes bluray” as so many BD skeptics seem to think.
And they wonder why piracy is high…
we want to watch movies on our portable movie players!
It gets worse.
I tried to use my digital copy of Wall-E. I checked the back and made sure I had all the requirements. It said it required a Microsoft DRM compatible device. I was like wow easy. I have a Zune. Turns out that the Zune (made by Microsoft) isn’t a Microsoft DRM compatible device?
Talk about the 7 levels of hell. Seriously the stupidest thing I’ve ever encountered.
yep
“So long as downloading a torrent is easier and more flexible than using the official channel, these studios don’t have a hope in hell of beating piracy.
”
that is the exact reason why iTunes has now gone DRM free. i think apple is the first to realise the above statement. if only we could get everyone on the same page.
Why is apple always credited to be the first in everything they copy?
Amazon Mp3 was DRM free since it started in 2007, it was the major selling point..
Apple started moving towards DRM free in response to that only this year.
I always love the BD and DVD “You are a thief” intros that I’m forced to watch on the discs that I’ve bought legally. I always presume that the pirated copies don’t have this nonsense – so really, what is the point?
I’ve noticed a few digital copies – Watchmen and Valkyrie support the Mac – Gran Torino (Warner) is Windows Media (these are UK BD discs). Of course, I’d be happier still if Apple condescended to support Blu-Ray on their computers too.
Don’t forget Nick – you didn’t BUY the Digital Copy – you bought a LICENSE to use it.
That License extends to whatever the studio want it to – no more. That includes – but is not limited to – the number of times you can ‘activate’ it.
I also believe the license restricts the amount of times you may open the fridge each day, the time of the day you may eat a hotdog and minimum level of times you MUST laugh at a crap comedy (not Zac’n'Miri – that’s a good flick).
Call me a cynic, but the whole thing is a moronic marketing ploy. These things cost 5 bucks more than the non-dc version. For the “convenience”, and er, the fact that the production costs involved in extra discs and printing (which only actually cost them a matter of cents per unit) mean the premium is warranted! Yes, that’s it!
The problem is, you don’t need a physical disc at all. Just use the bd player’s net connection to send a passcode/link to your email addy. Which then unlocks a download on a secure/separate site and away you go, iPod file a go-go. But hey, then you couldn’t charge the five bucks extra, could you?
Worse still is that you mainly only get the choice with regular DVD. Most of the time on Bd you don’t have the choice between with or without dc. So even though you’re paying more for your hd movie in the first place, you pay even MORE because there’s no version without it (and if you buy American discs from Amazon you’re screwed because you don’t have an American iTunes account rendering it a coaster!). There are the rare cases like the 2 and 3 disc bd versions of Wall-E when they do give you a choice and the idiots at Amazon erase the saving by discounting them differently so they both end up the same price! Ironic, for a movie about not contributing to landfill. There was favourable reaction to the regular DVD (which could potentially be burned to portable devices) added to the bd versions of Sleeping Beauty, but I guess they realised their mistake because now we’re getting movies with BD, DVD AND DC included! No Bd only, of course.
Obviously, I too am pissed off. Which is not what you want from your early adopters really…
P.S. Josh, Z & M IS a “crap comedy”! It’s good, but there’s definitely one scene in which crap is definitely the focus of the comedy ;)