Wired.com reports that RealDVD, the DVD ripping software that launched a few months ago, lost its case against the Hollywood studios. The judge ruled that RealNetworks violated the DMCA by distributing the software, regardless of its intended use.

[Judge] Patel said the RealDVD software violates the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 that prohibits the circumvention of encryption technology. DVDs are encrypted with what is known as the Content Scramble System, and DVD players must secure a license to play discs. RealDVD, she ruled, circumvents technology designed to prevent copying.

But the decision, although mixed, left open the door that copying DVD’s for personal use “may well be” lawful under the fair use doctrine of the Copyright Act, although trafficking in such goods was illegal.

“Because RealDVD makes a permanent copy of copyrighted DVD content, there is no exemption from DMCA liability, statutory or otherwise, that applies here. Whatever application the fair use doctrine may have for individual consumers making backup copies of their own DVDs, it does not portend to save Real from liability under the DMCA in this action,” Patel wrote (.pdf) in a lawsuit brought by Hollywood.

Glickman praises this decision in the article, as if RealDVD would be of any use to those who wish to violate copyright on DVDs by making copies for others to use, or its prohibition will stop others from ripping movies with other software instead, without seeming to consider that such actions may be causing the very infringement the MPAA claims to be fighting against. No doubt many people get their DVD-purchased films from sources unsanctioned by Hollywood because they are unaware of or don’t know how to use DVD ripping software with their own discs (or because they might consider a $150,000 civil fine a lighter sentence than 5 years in prison). The long-established process of CD ripping gives them the belief that their acts are not in violation of copyright (or that their violation is justified) due to their purchase of the DVD. Removing the DRM on DVDs could very well reduce this behavior, as the awareness of rippers would increase and the lack of legal concern could lead to easier and more efficient ripping technologies. It could also make Hollywood stop looking like they believe we are still in a world where CSS is a barrier to DVD access.

• Wired.com
• Slashdot

VLC - Credit: videolan.org

VLC 1.0 has been released.

• Free, Open Source and cross-platform
• Independant of systems codecs to support most video types
• Live recording
• Instant pausing and Frame-by-Frame support
• Finer speed controls
• New HD codecs (AES3, Dolby Digital Plus, TrueHD, Blu-Ray Linear PCM, Real Video 3.0 and 4.0, …)
• New formats (Raw Dirac, M2TS, …) and major improvements in many formats…
• New Dirac encoder and MP3 fixed-point encoder
• Video scaling in fullscreen

• RTSP Trickplay support
• Zipped file playback
• Customizable toolbars
• Easier encoding GUI in Qt interface
• Better integration in Gtk environments
• MTP devices on linux
• AirTunes streaming
• New skin for the skins2 interface

I saw a VLC guy at OVC.  Congrats VLC guy.

• VLC

Rockbox

Rockbox 3.3 has been released.

The Rockbox project is pleased to announce the immediate availability of Rockbox 3.3. Over the last three months, we’ve been adding a number of new features which includes but is not limited to USB support on many PortalPlayer based devices, JPEG album art support and a support for the LUA scripting language. With this release you will be able to use external JPEG album art as created by many popular desktop media players without the need to convert. And you can sync this album art, music and of course any other file to the player within Rockbox on more players than ever before. The list of new features also includes the ability to start and control the playback from within the fancy PictureFlow plugin.

Hmm…Sadly my Gigabeat S is still not completely supported.  Maybe it will work a bit better this time though.

• Rockbox

Miro 2.0 - Credit: getmiro.com

Miro 2.0 has been released.

Miro 2 has an all-new interface and lots of new features– but for me it’s less of a collection of new stuff and more of a rethinking of the whole Miro experience. I’m really proud of what we’ve built and I think it will definitely advance our mission to spread open video to more people.

In a nutshell, here’s what’s new:

• A beautiful, all-new widget based interface (see it in action here)
• Browse while you watch– pop out any video to an external window (our number one requested feature)
• Miro is now faster, more responsive, and uses less memory
• You can add streaming sites like Hulu to your sidebar (note: streaming with Flash only works in Windows and OSX)
• You can add download sites like Archive.org or legaltorrents.com to your sidebar and download to Miro with a single click
• Improved playlists
• New compact, sortable list view
• Better audio support

Crazy, I was just wearing my Miro shirt last night telling someone I needed to check out Miro again (I haven’t messed with it since back when it was Democracy), and I was just about to download it as I read this.  I hope there is some better stuff for Miro nowadays than Revision 3 and their ambiguous licensing.

• Miro
• TorrentFreak

Amarok with Magnatune - Credit: amarok.kde.org

Amarok 2, “In the beginning”, has been released.  Amarok is the popular KDE media player.

Now, after two years of development, we are proud to announce that Amarok 2 has arrived. This arrival is just the beginning.
This new version brings with it a lot of changes:

• Completely redesigned user interface
• Tight integration with online services such as Magnatune, Jamendo, MP3tunes, Last.fm and Shoutcast
• Completely overhauled scripting API and plugin support to allow better integration into Amarok
• Migration from the KDE 3 to KDE 4 framework, and utilization of core technologies such as Solid, Phonon, and Plasma

The user interface has been redesigned to make context information like lyrics and albums from the same artist more accessible and allow you to decide which information you want to see by adding applets to the Context View in the middle. The new Biased Playlists offer a way to let Amarok take care of your playlist in an intelligent way similar to Dynamic Playlists in previous versions. A new service framework allows for a tight integration of online services like Jamendo, Magnatune and Ampache. New services can easily be added via GetHotNewStuff in Amarok or from kde-apps.org. More applets and scripts are being worked on and users are welcome to contribute more to make Amarok suit their needs. The migration from the KDE 3 to KDE 4 framework allows us to make use of technologies like Plasma, Phonon and Solid which make Amarok easier to use and maintain and ready for the future of music on your computer and on the internet.

Yay!  I love Amarok!

• Amarok

Songbird 1.0 - Credit: Songnest.com

Songbird 1.0 has been released.  Songbird is an extensible music player licensed under the GPLv2.

We set out to build an open, customizable music player. Today, we’re launching with dozens of integrated services, hundreds of add-ons, and a growing developer community. We’ll be the first to admit that there’s plenty left to do. And, while we’re not ready for everyone, 160k users a month are expressing their vote for an alternative music player.

If you think like us, you’ve got huge aspirations and you’re out to change the world. You gotta start somewhere, this is our 1.0.

Has anyone used it before?  I’m interested in hearing thoughts.  How does it compare to Amarok, or is it different enough that there is no comparison?  Have you noticed that in all the pictures of the Songbird mascot, it looks like it’s farting?

• Songbird Blog
• Ars Technica

NetworkWorld reports that RealNetworks, makers of RealPlayer and now RealDVD, have launched a lawsuit against the MPAA.

Apparently tired of waiting to be sued by the motion picture industry over its new DVD-to-PC copying software, RealNetworks this morning announced that it will file a preemptive legal action of its own in an attempt to establish the product’s legality.

I wonder how this will end.

• NetworkWorld.com
• Slashdot

OStatic reports that Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu, has decided to partner with Fluendo and CyberLink to sell proprietary codecs and DVD playback functionality, respectively.

They could have taken the approach that every last Ubuntu user is vested in the “free as in speech” aspect of open source and does not own a single piece of media in a proprietary format. That would have been seen through immediately as either a blatant lie or delusional thinking. Or they could have thumbed their noses at the intellectual property laws in several countries, and refused to offer a legal alternative on the grounds that the laws are simply restrictive and misguided.

The laws are misguided. They are restrictive. They are still legally binding, though, and it is not Canonical’s call to encourage (or require) that any Linux user violate them. For this reason, Canonical is doing the right thing in offering a legal alternative.

I’m not quite sure how I feel about this.  I’m guessing that Canonical wants to fend off potential lawsuits now that Ubuntu is becoming more popular.  I recall Fedora doing something similar a while ago with Codec Buddy, although Fedora has never included proprietary codecs in their repositories to begin with.

• OStatic
• Canonical Blog
• Slashdot

The first alpha of Amarok 2.0 has been released.

New fascinating look: With the use of vector graphics, artwork looks crispier than ever, while color scheme independence guarantees it’ll look gorgeous no matter what.

Innovative user interface: Don’t miss several UI innovations like the Plasma powered Context View, new space efficient playlist, and amazing PopUp Dropper! The new Context View allows you to show all the context information you care about. We expect a lot of Plasmoids to be provided by the community in the first months after the release of Amarok 2. PopUp Dropper lets you do different things with your files by simply dragging them to the context view and dropping them on the appropriate area. Append songs to the playlist, copy songs to your local collection, transfer them to your mobile device and edit their tags are just some of the operations PopUp Dropper offers.

Almighty Internet service framework: Seamlessly integrate online music repositories and web services into your musical experience. With online sources like Magnatune, Last.fm, Jamendo, Ampache and MP3tunes you’ll be supplied with music 24/7.

Powerful scripting: The new scripting interface is fully based on Qt technology. The APIs are being redesigned, so script authors are asked to wait at least for the first beta release before porting their scripts.

Dynamic and new Biased playlists: Let Amarok choose the music for you. In this alpha you will see the foundations of the new Biased playlists which in the future will let you specify dynamic playlist for any occasion.

Mobile devices support: We are working hard to make sure you’ll easily and efficiently access music on your media devices within Amarok, and integrate it with your music collection.

Cross platform: This Alpha release lays the groundwork for a release on all major platforms. Future releases will feature Linux, Windows and MacOS versions.

Yay!  I love Amarok!  Note: “The artwork looks crispier than ever.”

• Amarok
• Amarok Blog