This was posted to the aus.linux.comp ng just today. I dont know about you guys (and grrls :) ) but this sort of stuff scares the bejesus out of me. please read carefully before posting an opinion: Mihaly -- "There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands "
---------- > From: 'agent <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Newsgroups: aus.computers,aus.computers.linux > Date: Sat, 04 Oct 2003 15:44:55 +1000 > Subject: Phoenix to develop DRM-equipped BIOS > > Although DRM technology has moved steadily forward, consumers have had > some choice whether to implement it. Selected software providers in > various markets, such as Intuit and Macromedia, have chosen to implement > DRM, allowing consumers to choose DRM-less alternatives. > > Phoenix's efforts, however, represent a more fundamental sea change. > Phoenix is a manufacturer of BIOS software, the underlying code which ties > together a PC's operating system and the system hardware. Since a personal > computer must have BIOS installed to boot, a user could be forced to use > the DRM technology whether he or she chooses to or not. > > The final version of the cME is due to launch in the fourth quarter, > Timothy D. Eades, senior vice-president of corporate marketing for > Phoenix, said in an interview. > > Phoenix's customers include four out of the top five PC OEMs. Dell > Computer uses a heavily-modified Phoenix BIOS from 1988 on its notebooks > and desktops, a Dell spokesman confirmed, and Phoenix BIOSes have appeared > in Pavilion desktops and notebooks from Hewlett-Packard. > > The Phoenix-Orbid deal was designed to allow content providers the ability > to "track and trace" content which might be shared from one user to the > next, Eades said. > > "DRM seems to be becoming a bigger and bigger issue, particularly > in�entertainment," Eades said. "Track and trace downloads and the > authentication of those downloads is a big issue, but a number of > companies do that. Track and trace of a particular solution, however, is > done by very few companies." > > The Orbid DRM software will be built into the cME, which provides an > enhanced BIOS that allows greater interaction with the operating system. > While the cME isn't directly a part of Microsoft's Next-Generation Secure > Computing Base (NGSCB), known previously as Palladium, Eades said the > technology is "complementary". > > Orbid's 4DRM software creates a secure area to store public keys, which > can be used to tie any file to that specific PC. The 4DRM system creates a > unique identifier for both the content as well as the system, allowing the > content providers to manage the content on a user's PC. Orbid previously > developed "watermarking" solutions to identify content and prevent it from > being distributed or copied, which it calls "gray trading". > > Phoenix and Orbid have created a working version of the software that > Phoenix is now demonstrating for its OEM customers, Eades said. The DRM > software will be shipped as a default option inside the cME package. "It's > up to the OEM whether or not to insert it on the machine," he said. "We > are offering it as a default option and it's up to them to remove it." > > An OEM will also have to decide whether or not to allow an end user to > turn the DRM feature off, Eades said. > > Whether or not OEMs will adopt the new technology remains to be seen. > Microsoft's NGSCB technology is currently tied to Longhorn, Microsoft's OS > revision due in about two year's time. > > At Dell, the company purchased a BIOS solution from Phoenix in 1988, and > since then has assigned Dell engineers to update it with support for the > latest hardware, a spokesman said. "We make it pretty clear that Dell > writes the BIOS for a particular system," he said. > > Intel ships BIOSes designed by Phoenix rival AMI with its desktop > motherboards, an Intel spokesman said. Intel will discuss its own security > solution, LaGrande, at its Intel Developer Forum in two weeks' time. > > The Phoenix software could also turn up in consumer electronics devices. > Phoenix has relationships with several consumer electronics manufacturers, > including Pioneer and Matsushita, which have announced that they will use > embedded versions of the Phoenix software in their next-generation > televisions. Other CE customers include Sony and Toshiba, Eades said. > > "Initial customer feedback from the entertainment industry in general has > been very favorable," Eades added. > > --- END QUOTE --- -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group - http://slug.org.au/ More Info: http://lists.slug.org.au/listinfo/slug
