Apple Thoughts: iTunes HD Doesn't Like Older Displays

"Yesterday, Dieter told us Apple had finally pulled the trigger on HD downloads for iTunes. Today, the internets (led by iLounge, via Gizmodo) are up in arms because said downloads are infected with Big Media-enforced DRM to such a degree that they can’t even play on older, non-HDCP (high definition copy protection) compatible devices. What does this mean? Even if you forked over $2K for a ginormous Apple 30″ Cinema Display, that “cinema” part of the branding will be just plain useless to you except for the very helpful popup you’ll get reading: This movie cannot be played because a display that is not authorized to play protected movies is connected."

Just for the record, I'm still annoyed by this. One of the first columns I wrote for this site smashed Steve Jobs for his hypocrisy in regards to how he handles DRM on video versus DRM on music. I think little by little there's more backing for my opinion than there even was when I wrote it. Jobs has no problem telling the music industry they need to abandon DRM, but when the time comes for Hollywood to do the same, he blindly accepts their demands to the point where he allows them to tell you that on your authorized computer, you can't play a movie you bought legitimately if you don't have a certain kind of connection to your monitor.

No amount of arguing will ever convince me that this is anything else but a blatant double standard loaded with hypocrisy.