The Zune and the Zune Marketplace certainly have their strong points, but let's face it: video is not one of them. While our iPod/iTunes brethren have access to many movies, and more TV than anyone could watch in a lifetime, for us Zunies we're more audio focused in what Microsoft sells us. However, the screen on the Zune 80 is simply so nice, that it's a shame to not put it to use with some video goodness.
In order to watch videos on the Zune, most users convert their own video content. There are plenty of options to do it, but they tend to be involved, labor and processor intensive, and not for the less than computer savvy (see one method here). Still, for those willing to invest the effort, mobile video is currently many clicks away.
With the above in mind, it is annoying to hear a story that they are working on a "piracy filter" for the Zune. Here's an excerpt:
NBC Universal today revealed in a discussion with the New York Times that Microsoft is working to implement an anti-piracy filter into its Zune media players. While not outlining the amount of progress, the studio's digital chief J. B. Perrette says that Microsoft has agreed to work on a "cop" that would check the legitimacy of videos loaded on the device; those deemed illegal would refuse to play. The implementation would function similarly to automatic blocks being tried at YouTube and other sites, which are claimed to stop easy bootlegging by checking such data as the title or basic track information.
This immediately brings up all kinds of issues in my mind. For starters, my Zune experience isn't stable enough to add this type of nonsense to the player. How about fixing the Zune software? And don't get me started about the random freezes that occur on my Zune once a month or so that require resets.
This all speaks about greed to me. I'm allowed to watch NBC television at home, after all that's how the network makes money. I'm allowed to record the show on a VCR or Tivo for later viewing. I can record the show on a Microsoft Media Center PC, and watch it later. But I take the show, reformat it so I can watch it on my Zune on the subway in the morning, and now I can't because of some piracy filter? How does this make any sense?
In the end, how could they really implement it? Don't they think that folks just wouldn't upgrade their firmware, or use an alternate form of Zune software? This whole plan sounds like nothing but greed on their part, and it's just not gonna fly. Perhaps they're realizing it, because the story got updated to say that Microsoft won't filter the content from NBC. Then again, I don't even watch anything on NBC, but this still annoys me.
