MicrosoftÕs OPM for the masses. by Peter Rojas, Endgadget, Jul 14, 2005.
From “The Clicker, ” a weekly column on television and technology.
Microsoft’s next operating system, “Longhorn,” will, according to this article, have something called PVP-OPM (Protected Video Path Ð Output Protection Management), which “is the first play in MicrosoftÕs game plan to ensure that protected content stays protected.” This technology will
detect the capabilities of your computer monitor and manage what, if anything, gets sent to it. This will be one more way that the combination of operating systems and hardware will be able to impose digital rights management (DRM) on users and interfere with your unrestricted use of your hardware.
So what will happen when you try to play premium content on your incompatible monitor? If youÕre ÒluckyÓ, the content will go through a resolution constrictor. The purpose of this constrictor is to down-sample high-resolution content to below a certain number of pixels. The newly down-sampled content is then blown back up to match the resolution of your monitor. This is much like when you shrink a JPEG and then zoom into it. Much of the clarity is lost. The result is a picture far fuzzier than it need be.
If OPM determines that your monitor falls below the security restrictions, … you could be greeted with a Òpolite message explaining that [your monitor] doesnÕt meet security requirements.Ó
Who determines when you get the restrictor and when you get the black screen? You guessed it: the content owner does.
As the article notes, this is not just a Microsoft invention. “The next generation of digital content will, by and large, be protected to the display.”
Thanks to Slashdot.
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