error message while trying to play movie using Win DVD

[ipodtrip]

received an error message everytime I try to play the movie Entourage on my Thinkpad T60 using Win DVD
The message is playback stopped copy protection signal detected.
Went to Lenvo website and downloaded an update but still the getting the same message.
How do I fix this problem?

[hellosailor]

Sounds like WinDVD thinks your movie is an illegal copy & is refusing to play it. Welcome to DRM (Digital Rights Management) enabled software.

I'd take the movie back to where you got it, and ask them if it is legitimate.

[rkawakami]

If it's only that one movie/disk, then you may have received a bad one or it's a copy. If ALL of the DVDs you try playing complain, then it's more likely something in your system (software, bad optical drive).

[ipodtrip]

Played the same movie on WINdows Media player and its ok. Its been on this one disk so far. I try another movie. Are all the new movies have this software on them.

[hellosailor]

"Played the same movie on WINdows Media player"
Actually, you didn't.

Windows Media Player, like most software, ships in many different versions and DRM has been implemented differently in every one of them. It is entirely possible that the version you used doesn't check for the same restrictions that the WinDVD version does, so you've still got a counterfeit disc. Each studio makes their own decisions about what protections to use but you can expect that "all" of them will be using stricter protections as they become available. And the counterfeiters will continue to find ways to defeat the protections, and then new protection schemes and new versions of software will come around.

It never ends. Buy your DVDs from a reputable vendor, not a street vendor, and if there's ever a problem they will take them back.

[ipodtrip]

both the DVD are from Netflix, unless Netflix changed there policy and are renting out illegal copies.

[hellosailor]

Well, since Netflix got themselves sued bigtime over the fraud of "throttling", one could argue that they've proven themselves unethical and counterfeiting is, after all, just a matter of ethics.

Or, they might have gotten bogus discs from a distributor. Or, from a customer who duped a disc and kept the original. No way to be sure, but at least you know you CAN send it back, mark it "BAD DISC" and TAPE a note on it saying not to send it out anymore. They'll replace it.

Throttling, if you haven't heard, was how Netflix would only send out one disc per day--even if you returned three in the same envelope, you would not get three back the next day. You'd get one back thenext day, the second in two days, the third in three days, so a heavy user may literally get half the number of movies that they expect with their "unlimited" turnaround--which is in fact limited.

The appeals to the lawsuit settlement are still pending, one of these years they're supposed to give a free month of service to "many many many" past customers. I haven't heard whether they are still throttling accounts that way. Try sending three back in one envelope, and see if the next three all come back to you on the same day. (Wanna bet?<G>)