A recent reissue of the blockbuster Terminator 2 contains a DVD-ROM version of the movie with a new anti-piracy technique: 5-day viewing licenses issued over the Internet.
The new digital rights management (DRM) system also looks up a PC"s Internet address--if the computer has a non-U.S. number, playback of the DVD-ROM will be prevented.
The Web-checking system means that even if the DVD-ROM is copied, only one PC at a time around the world can play it back--bad news for DVD pirates located in Asia and elsewhere.
And anyone thinking of copying the movie file from the DVD-ROM onto a hard drive and sharing it online can forget it: The file is only playable from a valid DVD-ROM disc--again, only after online verification.