PowerDVD Error: "You must update CyberLink PowerDVD to continue playback of this content."

Question

My legally purchased copy of PowerDVD is refusing to play Bluray discs made after a certain date:

Astonishingly, this is "standard practice" for all versions of PowerDVD.

In my case, this means that many Blurays produced after May 2011 no longer work with my player. I can't watch Star Wars, I can't watch Indiana Jones, I can't watch Prometheus, I can't watch the new Criterion remaster of Seven Samurai... Even though I've legally bought a Bluray player!

Cyberlink's solution is to simply buy the latest version of their software.

Having already spent the cost of a hardware Bluray player ($100+) for their software equivalent, you can imagine I'm pretty reticent about being forced to it again. What's worse is that I purchased PowerDVD in November 2009, meaning I had less than 18 months of trouble free use(!).

Their latest version of PowerDVD is $125, and Lord knows how long that would function for...!

Seeing how I legally own a Bluray player, and genuine Bluray discs, is there not any way I can manually update the AACS keys for PowerDVD myself??

This seems like yet another occasion where the pirates get a better deal than those of us who pay their money to do things legitimately :(

Solution

I've been in touch with CyberLink as well as the UK's consumer advice service, and it appears there's nothing I can do. Cyberlink are knowingly selling software which will become useless after two years of use, but technically they can claim that two years is a long enough time for their software to work properly.

In my case, I only had 17 months worth of use from it, but that still doesn't change anything -- as unreasonable as their behaviour is, it's not illegal. It seems incredibly unfair, like buying a CD player that refuses to play CDs after a certain date. Or, more literally, buying a hardware Blu-ray player unit that only works for 18 months... and then requires you to purchase an entire new unit just to play the latest movies.

Normal hardware Blu-ray units offer free indefinite updates. CyberLink do not.

Rather than give CyberLink more of my money for another version of their software, when I all I want is just the standard AACS security keys to be updated (like they are with every other Blu-ray player), I've purchased SlySoft's AnyDVD HD. This removes the need to AACS checks and allows me to play my legitimately bought Blurays with my legitimately bought Bluray player software.

If this doesn't take your fancy, I'd suggest putting your money towards a hardware Blu-ray player (like a PlayStation 3). You will get your AACS keys updated for you for free -- you don't need to keep buying a new PlayStation 3 every 18 months!

Comments

[Karan]

If the official way to update the keys is to pay for them (via buying the newer version), and doing it any other way constitutes piracy, this is probably not the best place to ask such a question.

[Guillaume Brunerie]

I would say: 1) Do not buy proprietary software 2) Do not buy Blurays while the AACS has not been cracked

[Django Reinhardt]

@Karan How does this constitute piracy exactly? The keys are not owned by Cyberlink, they're just deliberately not updating their player in order to force users to buy the latest version.

[Guillaume Brunerie]

@JohnnyW How are you planning to get the new AACS keys? This is already piracy, you are not allowed to have them in your possession unless they are hidden in a proprietary software or hardware player… Moreover if your version of PowerDVD does not have a way to update the keys (I don’t know if this is the case), then trying to update the keys anyway is also piracy. Welcome to the wonderful world of proprietary software and digital rights management.

[Karan]

@JohnnyW: BTW, I read through the CyberLink forum thread you linked to. I wonder what became of nagpig's Trading Standards complaint? I would certainly be very interested in seeing this sort of thing being challenged in court (with both CyberLink and AACS LA as defendants). Kill all DRM!

[Guillaume Brunerie]

@JohnnyW Perhaps you can try with VLC 2.0.4. You will have to install separately the AACS decoding library and keys (because it’s illegal) but if you’re lucky your disks might be encrypted with one of the known keys. Of course I can’t give a link here but you will easily find the keys in Google.

[Django Reinhardt]

Agh, this is so frustrating. If I wanted to resort to breaking the law, I wouldn't have purchased the player software. Imagine buying a CD player that refused to play CDs after a certain date. It's unbelievable :(

[Django Reinhardt]

So I've sent a letter to Consumer Reports (USA), Which Magazine (UK), and AdviceGuide (the new ConsumerDirect in the UK). Hopefully one of them will advise!

[bummi]

The question seems to be about legal issues and licensing.

[Django Reinhardt]

That's only one update. New AACS keys are released about six times a year. Also, it's only for PowerDVD 10.

[HDave]

By clicking on that link and installing the update, you can eventually get to version 12 but no futher.

[Admin]

I would not go so far as to say it's not illegal. Unless it is marked on the box or indicated in the description at the time of purchase, they are selling a blu-ray player that is reasonably assumed to play iso standard discs. If it does not do that, they may be guilty of fraud.

[Django Reinhardt]

@Physics-Compute As unfair as it seems, I've been in touch with a consumer advice authority, and they confirmed that it's not illegal.