Robt, the Divx CEO said on the conference call that they had investigated the possibility of such an add-on, but that it could not be done. From what I know about Divx, I agree that it is not feasible.
First, existing DVD players would need to have an interface for the add-on. There is no interface on existing DVD players.
Second, the Divx discs are encryted differently from DVD discs. It would be difficult if not impossible to add additional decryption technology to a DVD player, because existing DVD decryption is embedded in chips, making it difficult to gain access to the proper bit streams.
Third, the Divx decryption and authorization technology also is embedded in chips, in order to make it difficult to defeat the Divx system. Even if they could produce an add-on, the Divx folks would not want to sell a Divx system with interfaces that essentially makes it a converter box for DVD players -- which is very close to what Divx pirates would love to sell and own.
That being said, it may be possible for some manufacturers to retrofit existing DVD players by swapping out a board or two, but that is highly dependent on the DVD player design. It is also highly unlikely. |
