Ulead DVD Workshop 2.0 Macrovision

[Jerry Jones]

FYI,

For those wanting to use the Macrovision copy protection feature in Ulead DVD Workshop 2.0, I'll share my personal experience (positive) regarding the use of Macrovision copy protection.

Please be aware that one needs to first complete a USER AGREEMENT form from Macrovision *before* one can actually use the feature in Ulead DVD Workshop 2.0.

This will begin a process that will allow you to activate the copy protection feature in Ulead DVD Workshop 2.0.

The agreement doesn't cost anything unless you intend to produce a master from which multiple copies will be pressed.

Within an hour after filling out the Macrovision online form at the following Web page link...

http://www.macrovision.com/company/contact/index.shtml

...I received the following response:

Subject: Macrovision Authoring License

"We received your email and understand that you have purchased a product that will allow DVD disc authoring using Macrovision's protection."

"Please find attached general info on our DVD program and a license agreement for you to sign."

"The license is a NON COST license, however, if you elect to apply the bits onto any master for your own product or for your customers, you or your customer will need to pay a per disc price for each DVD that is pressed with Macrovision based on volume projected as stated in the price sheet attached."

"Upon your review of the info, please sign the authoring agreement and fax back to my direct attention."

"Should you elect to protect any programs and need a volume agreement, please do not hesitate to email/call me at the info below."

Grace S. Long
Accounts Manager, North America
Entertainment Technology Division
Macrovision Corporation
2830 De La Cruz Blvd.
Santa Clara, CA 95050
toll free-866-891-mvsn
tel-408-562-8490
direct fax-408-743-9655
cell-408-209-4113
grace@macrovision.com

Quick and straightforward.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Brian Ellis]

Please be advised I received the following e-mail from Macrovision:

Hello Brian,

Thank you for your interest in Macrovision's copy protection technology. Macrovision can only be applied to a DLT and sent to replication. It is not compatible with DVD-R burning. It requires replication.

Regards,
Melissa Magallon
National Account Manager
Macrovision Corporation

This seems to contradict your "The agreement doesn't cost anything unless you intend to produce a master from which multiple copies will be pressed." as it appears it can be used only for the production of a master.

[Jerry Jones]

I suspect that there's a misinterpretation here.

There are two forms of copy protection.

1. There's the Macrovision copy protection that can be enabled by the user who is simply burning discs from DVD Workshop.

That - as I understand it - requires the NON COST user agreement to be signed.

2. There's the CSS (Content Scrambling System) feature available to those who utilize DVD Workshop's DLT (Digital Linear Tape) output option.

These are two different options.

The first is free.

The second appears to cost 66 cents per disc (after the first copy) for pressed runs under 499 disc copies.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Brian Ellis]

Have you actually tried your 1) option and does it work, Jerry?

Actually, in WS2, there are three options: Macrovision 1 and 2 plus CSS. I agree CSS is for DLT only, but I did ask for Macrovision.

[jjulio1111]

Jerry Jones,

It seams that this Macrovision type isn't a good one, because our DVD recorders can not write at the first 6 bytes of a disc, however I would like to try the kind you got. Could you e-mail me the DVD program that you got?

Sinc.,

J Julio F Leite
jjulio1111@hotmail.com

[jjulio1111]

Jerry Jones,

It seams that this Macrovision type isn't a good one, because our DVD recorders can not write at the first 6 bytes of a disc, however I would like to try the kind you got. Could you e-mail me the DVD program that you got?

Sinc.,

J Julio F Leite
jjulio1111@hotmail.com

[Jerry Jones]

DVD Workshop 2 is an aging Ulead/Corel software product.

You can still buy it here:

http://www.ulead.com/dws/runme.htm

Hope this helps.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Hulk]

From my research on this a few years back I'm pretty sure that you cannot burn a disc with Macrovision with WS2. You must have it sent in for replication to have Macrovision enabled. The selection in WS2 is only a flag that is enabled to tell the replicator to include whichever type of Macrovision you selected.

Type 3 is stronger than type 2, which is stronger than type 1. PAL video only supports type 1. Type 1 distorts the video signal. Type 2 adds a 2 line color stripe to the signal, and Type 3 adds a 4 line color stripe. Macrovision is an analog-only copy protection mechanism.

Macrovision does not charge for personal projects but royalty fees may apply for commercial projects.

This is the information I was provided when I spoke to the Ulead engineers a few years ago when writing the books on WS2.

Jerry - I would be interested to know if your Macrovision burned discs are not able to be copied onto a VCR.

[Jerry Jones]

Mark,

After I got the e-mail referenced in this thread, which dates back to 2004, something interesting happened.

There are two types of copy protection, as you know.

1. Macrovision

2. CSS

The CSS is available only when one is using a digital linear tape (DLT) drive, which allows for professional disc replication.

However -- and I admit my memory may be foggy -- the Macrovision protection in DVD Workshop could possibly, in theory, be applied prior to the ISO/burn dialogue.

Somebody who still has DVD Workshop 2 installed might be able to confirm this by simply looking at the menu.

I no longer have DVD Workshop 2 installed on my computer -- it's incompatible with VideoStudio 11 in my opinion -- so I removed it and I can't check to make certain.

But I do have a copy of a second 2004 e-mail I got from a Macrovision representative who contacted Ulead and advised them that Macrovision did not intend for their protection to be applied prior to an ISO/burn dialogue.

In other words, he seemed to question how Ulead's engineers implemented it in DVD Workshop 2.

Why?

Because -- and I'm quoting his e-mail here:

"We cannot support the use of Macrovision copy protection for burned DVDs because it is unreliable."

I had no opportunity to test its use with digital linear tape because I didn't have a DLT drive.

Nor did I attempt to test it in the normal ISO/burn dialogue because I assumed it wasn't intended for that.

So that's where I stopped.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Brian Ellis]

When WS2 was released, I had an exchange with a Macrovision engineer and I was told that it was not possible to implement any copy protection or regional coding on DVD-R discs (the only ones available at that time) because the position for these was on the permanent header track which tells the burner/player what kind of disc it is. This ties in with Jerry's message, where they state "...DVD that is pressed..." FWIW.

[Jerry Jones]

Interesting.

I just checked the Corel Web site.

It seems they're now selling DVD Workshop 2:

http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/us/en/Product/1177441134081

I wonder if this is a sign that a future version will be developed?

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Hulk]

When WS2 was released, I had an exchange with a Macrovision engineer and I was told that it was not possible to implement any copy protection or regional coding on DVD-R discs (the only ones available at that time) because the position for these was on the permanent header track which tells the burner/player what kind of disc it is. This ties in with Jerry's message, where they state "...DVD that is pressed..." FWIW.

That is basically what the Ulead engineers told me.

[Jerry Jones]

I've seen chatter on forums recently suggesting that the copy protection companies are changing their stance; that they've come up with a way to burn the copy protection schemes directly to consumer discs.

I haven't read all of the details, but I seem to recall only certain newer drives that support this feature are able to do it.

It was forum chatter and I haven't even looked into whether it's true or not.

I think it was the Ulead forum and I seem to recall it was George Wing -- a guy who has a decent understanding of video.

So I suspect there's something to it.

I'll look into it when I get time.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net

[Jerry Jones]

My memory was correct.

It was George Wing who recently wrote this on the Ulead Web Board:

Currently, dvd burners cannot burn the CSS/APS because they are limited to the 2048 bytes per sector -- but that might change sometime later this year where we *might* be able to burn CSS on home made DVD's (the format was approved, but the burners, software, and dvd blanks will need to be able to work properly for this to happen). And there's still the licensing side of things (who pays -- users and/or the software companies).

http://phpbb.ulead.com.tw/EN/viewtopic.php?t=23991&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

That was news to me.

I look forward to reading more about this.

Jerry Jones

http://www.jonesgroup.net