Cathy Is DRM-free!!!

[Bob]

so, if i burn the .divx to a cd, do i have a limit to how many times i can play it?

You can play it until the DVD turns to dust...... no view limits.

[Edward J Grug III]

This will be the first Rifftrax I won't buy, at least until my situation changes anyway.

I am only online at work, where they have some kind of block in place to stop me connecting to Divx.

I've bought all of the other shorts anyway, with the plan to watch them as I usually do (I don't and can't re-author my dvds) and since this one's a double, but with only one MP3, I am finally saying, no guys, that is too much of a pain in the ass to deal with.

[Edward J Grug III]

Ahem, well, my situation just changed thanks to a very friendly board member. I have bought this trax, but you guys are lucky you have some really awesome fans.

[BathTub]

so, if i burn the .divx to a cd, do i have a limit to how many times i can play it?

You can play it until the DVD turns to dust...... no view limits.

But there is a device limit isn't there? 10 or something?

[Quicksilver]

so, if i burn the .divx to a cd, do i have a limit to how many times i can play it?

You can play it until the DVD turns to dust...... no view limits.

But there is a device limit isn't there? 10 or something?

[MartyS (Gromit)]

so, if i burn the .divx to a cd, do i have a limit to how many times i can play it?

You can play it until the DVD turns to dust...... no view limits.

But there is a device limit isn't there? 10 or something?

Yes, I remember reading that when setting up my account, I don't remember the number either but 10 sounds right...

Do the Divx certified players erase the authorization CD-R you have to make?  I guess it would have to or else there's no way they could limit the devices since you could reuse the CD.  Or maybe the limit is only for computers?

There would be fewer complaints if they followed the iTunes model, computers can be authorized and deauthorized and will play without needing a live internet connection, and you can own as many players as you want, although the 5 computer limit on iTunes is kind of low....

Would be nice to have these on iTunes, but Apple sets all the prices on iTunes so they would cost more (if a big company like NBC/Universal couldn't set their own prices I doubt Rifftrax could)....

[Indomitus]

But there is a device limit isn't there? 10 or something?

Yes, I remember reading that when setting up my account, I don't remember the number either but 10 sounds right...

Ahem...
I bought mine, legit.  I'll watch however damn many times I want to, and I'm not going to call for permission every %#@%#%!! time.

I'll leave off the rest of the standard DRM rant, for the sake of space and time.  I'm sure you can read it anywhere else anyway.

Hey... what will you Divx guys do when they inevitably stop supporting that authorization protocol?

[torgosPizza]

Hey... what will you Divx guys do when they inevitably stop supporting that authorization protocol?

Hmm, the top guys we're in contact with over there haven't mentioned doing this anytime soon. Is there something you know that we don't?

Also, as I mentioned earlier (perhaps in another thread) they are working on an update to the authorization that doesn't require a live internet connection, but the timetable is a little long for it.

[bettertomorrowamy]

Hey... what will you Divx guys do when they inevitably stop supporting that authorization protocol?

Hmm, the top guys we're in contact with over there haven't mentioned doing this anytime soon. Is there something you know that we don't?

Also, as I mentioned earlier (perhaps in another thread) they are working on an update to the authorization that doesn't require a live internet connection, but the timetable is a little long for it.

I think he means in the event Divx goes under or something. 

One problem I had with iTunes' DRM on some music I bought was that I had all these songs that were authorized through an email address that I got through my cell phone provider.  My cell phone provider stopped offering that email address and abruptly cut off all use of the email address.  Then I switched computers, and iTunes wanted me to authorize the new computer to play these DRM music files.  I couldn't authorize them because I couldn't remember the password I used on that email account, so I couldn't verify my email address, so I couldn't authorize the computer to play the music.  Talk about a clusterfuck. 

Then I try talking to Apple about it, and I wait on hold or don't get a response to my emails.  Rifftrax is great because they are small and are directly available to you if you have problems. 

There are other reasons I hate DRM, but not being able to play what you purchased because you have to jump through 8,000 hoops is mostly why I hate DRM.

[Edward J Grug III]

Also, as I mentioned earlier (perhaps in another thread) they are working on an update to the authorization that doesn't require a live internet connection, but the timetable is a little long for it.

That sounds good!

[Quicksilver]

One problem I had with iTunes' DRM on some music I bought was that I had all these songs that were authorized through an email address that I got through my cell phone provider.  My cell phone provider stopped offering that email address and abruptly cut off all use of the email address.  Then I switched computers, and iTunes wanted me to authorize the new computer to play these DRM music files.  I couldn't authorize them because I couldn't remember the password I used on that email account, so I couldn't verify my email address, so I couldn't authorize the computer to play the music.  Talk about a clusterfuck. 

Then I try talking to Apple about it, and I wait on hold or don't get a response to my emails.  Rifftrax is great because they are small and are directly available to you if you have problems. 

There are other reasons I hate DRM, but not being able to play what you purchased because you have to jump through 8,000 hoops is mostly why I hate DRM.

You're not alone, my myspace page and my xbox live internet account were tied to an old college e-mail that got taken away at a random point. So my freaking horrible myspace page is up forever! I probably could do something about it, but I guess I dont care enough.....until my employer finds it or something.

[Teaflax]

At this point, opposing DRM is a principle for me, Even if I can work around it, I'd rather just vote with my wallet and not bother getting involved with it, because encouraging solutions that treat the end-user like a potential criminal is doing nobody any favors - not the consumers or the content creators.

DRM is a rental system, because sooner or later you will have to circumvent it to use the file you ostensibly bought in the way that you want. It may take fifteen years before this happens, but sooner or later, it will throw a spanner in your works.

So, the quicker DRM goes the way of the dodo (because it will have to, sooner or later), the better it is for everyone.

[PontiusFeeb]

Hmm, the top guys we're in contact with over there haven't mentioned doing this anytime soon. Is there something you know that we don't?

You don't have to contact top guys at divx to know that companies go out of business, especially user-hostile ones like divx.

I actually bought the latest shorts Rifftrax, against my better judgement. Rifftrax is the only reason I'd try to jump through hoops like this just to watch something on my TV.

Can anyone help me with my issues? Every time I log into my divx VOD account, the player tells me I need to download the latest version, even if I just did so, say, less than a minute ago. Anybody know how to make this stop?

Also, does anyone know how to find the divx authorization code for my Oppo DV-970HD player? It's not in the user manual, and the divx option in the player's menu is grayed out.

I realize these are Oppo and divx issues, not Rifftrax ones, but I thought I'd ask here first.

I understand why Rifftrax would contain DRM. After all, my wife and I (who went on our first date after finding out we were both MST fans) only watched every episode of MST3K, bought MST t-shirts and other merchandise, bought the MST episode guide, bought all of Mike's books, bought every last episide of Rifftrax, and tell everyone we can about Rifftrax. We might be copyright criminals.

[Edward J Grug III]

I understand why Rifftrax would contain DRM. After all, my wife and I (who went on our first date after finding out we were both MST fans) only watched every episode of MST3K, bought MST t-shirts and other merchandise, bought the MST episode guide, bought all of Mike's books, bought every last episide of Rifftrax, and tell everyone we can about Rifftrax. We might be copyright criminals.

That's really not fair. No one has accused YOU of being a criminal, but it IS true that Rifftrax stuff gets pirated, and you can understand why they guys might not want that.

I too believe that DRM is going to keep the buyers away, and only make the idea of a pirated, converted copy way more appealing, but I can understand where the guys are coming from.

[torgosPizza]

Also, does anyone know how to find the divx authorization code for my Oppo DV-970HD player? It's not in the user manual, and the divx option in the player's menu is grayed out.

I understand why Rifftrax would contain DRM

Regarding the first point, no - it's different for each device, unfortunately. It's up to the device manufacturer to decide where the activation for DivX goes. You can blame that on your device's maker, not DivX.

Regarding your second point, you must not have read any of our previous responses about the DivX DRM. The DRM is an unfortunate side effect of using DivX, which was our number one choice for a) preventing movies from being pirated (the other movie studios insist that there be either content or access control on anything that gets put out On Demand) and also for b) allowing us to serve a ton of data without having to deal with bandwidth issues.

If there was a way to have DivX serve our files DRM-free, we would probably go that route (although I'm speaking unofficially here, since I don't make the big decisions) but it is talked about a lot here and we are deciding our next steps.

We do understand the concerns surrounding DRM and we're doing our best to try and find a middle ground. Rest assured that our honest customers will be rewarded.