Welcome to DVI Gear!

Chris Bingham Managing Director DVI Gear	chris@dvigear.com 888-463-9927 919-969-6681
http://www.dvigear.com

Newest DVIGear product:

Media Receiver Cables - http://www2.dvigear.com/mdrcables.html

What are Media Receiver cables? They are the cables used to carry signals from switcher/receivers to plasma and LCD monitors. Pioneer, Philips, Sony, and Sharp primarily use them with their Media Receiver display boxes. Designed to give plasma and LCD display users the ability to remotely locate the receiver from the wall-mounted display itself, Media Receivers are shipped with fairly short cables, and in many cases it is necessary to locate these receivers 7, 10 and even 15 meters away.

Media Receiver cables are very difficult to find, especially outside of the standard lengths that manufacturers ship with the box.

We are currently the world's only manufacturer of non-standard length Media Receiver extension cables. So if that 2, 3 or 5-meter cable that came with your display box isn't long enough, give us a call or check out DVI Gear at http://www2.dvigear.com/mdrcables.html

Feature Article: HDCP - For Better or Worse?

HDCP (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection) is either the best or worst feature of digital connectivity technology, depending on who you are. HDCP, created by Intel, is a type of encryption designed to protect the content contained in DVI and HDMI transmissions. In order to protect content and to maintain copyrights, technology manufacturers must meet the demands of content producers and attain licenses that equip their products with HDCP through cipher keys. With these keys in use, display devices will be enabled to display the encrypted video content. The trick comes in attaining the key. Manufacturers agree to limit the video transmission to use by the authorized viewer, rather than allowing storage and retransmission of this content.

To simplify, what this really means is that, unlike analog content (i.e. NTSC TV shows, NTSC DVD's, etc.), digital content - like HD content - will be more regulated against piracy. This is done via HDCP. So let's say you have a non-HDCP plasma pr projector (one that you bought before mid-2003 when most manufacturers were not using HDCP); that means if you try to view HDCP content (such as movies on HBO or HD-TV shows on CBS), your display (projector or plasma) will only be able to see them using analog connectivity (Y, Pr, Pb) or in DVI at 480p. No 720p or 1080i. More on that later, read on�

HDCP encryption was developed primarily to protect and maintain the integrity of content traveling between two digital sources. It is important to note, however, that HDCP encryption does not protect against copying the information after the receiver device has received it. In order to use HDCP technology, a device must contain the HDCP technology. If a company wishes to implement HDCP in their products (which most major manufacturers have), they must obtain a license from the Digital Content Protection LLC. These licenses are expensive, as they cover the cost of the entire encryption process and are designed to prevent "fly-by-night" suppliers from using HDCP unless they are licensed.

In order to encrypt the information, HDCP compatible units contain a set of forty 56-bit keys that make up the unit's device private keys. Each set of these keys is associated with the device's key selection vector (KSV), which is entirely unique to that device. Therefore, each HDCP compatible transmitter and receiver has a KSV all to itself. This KSV allows for transmitters and receivers to communicate their encryption to one another in order to ensure the validity of their content protection. Only after a two-part encryption process takes place will the transmitter begin to send information to the receiver (via the digital output - i.e. DVI). If the set of device keys is found to be invalid or corrupt, the digital information will not be sent from the transmitter nor obtained by the receiver. The entire process takes a fraction of a second to complete. Of course, all the standard analog ports will still operate with or without HDCP, but the thought process behind digital connectivity is to provide an image far superior to analog outputs so that people will want to use the DVI and digital TV ports. This HDCP's popularity as an encryption technology is secured.

The main area of protection provided by HDCP is that against the interception of the data midstream. It is possible for a person with sufficient knowledge and technology to veritably "hack" into a DVI system and view or capture the transmissions while they are being sent. It is also quite possible for this to be done without the knowledge of the persons sending or viewing the technology. For home applications, while indeed situations such as this are possible, they are not likely to occur - this is more of a concern for professional privacy and security applications. However, in a situation where security becomes a high priority, such as the maintaining of copyrights or the sharing of corporate information in a business meeting, HDCP is a valuable and even necessary resource.

Sounds simple enough, right? Well, not really - the keys are expensive and difficult, as you might imagine. Thus, some manufacturers have products that are enabled with HDCP and some do not. Even if the devices on either end of the application are compliant, all devices in the middle must be as well (repeaters, converters, switchers, etc.). [Most cables and adapters will be a simple pass through of this information and are of no major concern.] For example, if we are using an HDCP encrypted DVD player with a DVI connection and transmitting to a projector, this projector must be equipped with HDCP. If we want to show this same content on two projectors simultaneously, the DVI distribution amplifier that we are using must also be equipped with HDCP. As the application becomes more complex it becomes less likely that the devices will be able to transmit the signal properly as it is probable that many of you out there have some HDCP products and some that are not.

So, if your system is working non-HDCP now, why should you care? Well, many of us are still viewing prime time TV and DirecTV HD movies and cable networks via analog connectivity (Y, Pr, Pb), and it looks fine. But remember that by 2007, everything will be digital. So you will be forced to use the DVI or digital connector eventually. In addition, as soon as you see a side-by-side comparison of digital connectivity to analog connectivity, you're hooked. So, you go out and buy a DVI projector and expect to connect it via your new DVI cable. But the projector you purchased is DVI, but non-HDCP. So your HDCP receiver won't play in digital - only in analog.

Limiting DVI DVD players to transmit HDCP encrypted signal to displays is an effort by Hollywood studios to protect and control their content, rightfully so - look what's happened to CD sales because of pirated audio technology. With HDTV being carried over DVI, not only does the issue surround movie, but also regular TV broadcasts such as TV shows and sporting events. As we go forward, this compatibility problem will likely continue to snowball in an effort to restrict the pirating of "other" digital video content like PowerPoint slide presentations in Universities, audio from CD's and even information for sale via the Internet. And, not all manufacturers have adopted the HDCP standards as quickly as they you might have thought. However, in recent months, many display manufacturers have been fielding nasty calls from people like you over the fact that their systems aren't working with new HD content. And most either have already invested in the HDCP license or are in the process of doing so. Although, this still doesn't help those of you who bought your projector a year ago for your home theater, saw that it had DVI, bought a DVD player with DVI and now are not getting the image you want because of HDCP.

So what happens if your display devices aren't HDCP and you have HDCP content? The plasma will just blow up, right? Not exactly, but you may very well wish it did. If you're running the output at 480p (the lowest resolution HD signal) then you'll see an image. But, as most content is 720p and 1080i, virtually everyone wants to see HD stuff in its native resolution format, but you can't. Instead, you get nothing but "digitally generated" image snow on the screen. And some source devices may save you from this and display a convenient message instead informing you of your HDCP incompatibility.

Ok, now you have a non-HDCP display with an HDCP encrypted source, what are your options once you find this out? If you can still take your display back and exchange it for a device that is HDCP compliant, this is the best option. Otherwise, unfortunately, your choices will be limited. Of course, you could go HD component video (analog HD), which will still produce a far superior image to NTSC, but it's still not native HD digital TV and by 2007, everything will be that way and you'll want to upgrade at some time in the future. Eventually everything will probably use HDCP. So, you've got to consider the future as well - what works now, may not always work that way in the future.

For example, if you plan on only using your new DVI equipped projector for display of computer signals from you PC or Mac, you may still want to go the route of buying HDCP compliant equipment anyway. Computer graphics card manufacturers will likely be pushed to enable HDCP of their products as well to protect digital content. In fact, the Radeon 9700 Pro from ATI already incorporates HDCP. Currently, you could use a PC's DVD player to output a DVI signal to your non-HDCP display without problems; but everyone in the PC industry thinks that will be short-lived as well. And, HDTV PCcards exist, which allow for off-air HDTV broadcasts to be routed into a tuner in your PC that could then send signal to a non-HDCP DVI Display. Two popular cards are the MyHD MDP-120 (available with DVI output "Daughter Card") and the Telemann HiPix DTV-200. And, although watching TV via a PC receiver isn't the simplest form of TV connectivity to explain to the babysitter, it does work, for now.

In the end, HDCP solves an age-old problem that's plagued Hollywood and other content producers for years and is something that is good for everyone. In fact, piracy is sited as the reason audio CD's never got to that price point we were promised when it debuted in the early 1980's. HDCP is future-proof protection. At the present time, it is only limiting the growth of digital connectivity technology because of the confusion surrounding the 'why when I connect something together with a cable, it doesn't work?' factor. But, this will all pass as education abounds for the consumer and the dealer. And as both the demand for and the industry of HDTV continue to grow, the need and availability of HDCP technology will expand as well.

More Great New Products:

M1 adapters - http://www2.dvigear.com/dvusbfetopdm.html

These HDCP compliant adapters are designed to allow DVI signal connectivity to M1 input displays. Connect any length DVI-D (or VGA) cable to this adapter to connect any DVI source with projectors from InFocus, Proxima/ASK, HP, Dell, Philips, and Gateway (all projectors using M1 inputs). Built with USB capabilities as well, our adapters are future-proof as they will allow you to take full advantage of current and future uses of USB on M1 projectors.

HDMI Cables in 2, 3 and 5 Meter Lengths all in Stock - http://www2.dvigear.com/hdmicables.html

We have the largest stock of HDMI cables in the world. We are highly focused on making longer cables and making connectivity easier with HDMI than anyone else.

Our supply of HDMI accessories includes not only our standard HDMI cables and adaptors, but also DVI to HDMI cables and adaptors. These allow you to connect a DVI source to an HDMI display or an HDMI source to a DVI display.

If you have a need, let us know�we are looking for new products to create in an effort to fit your needs.

Want to become a DVI Gear Dealer or Distributor?

Contact Hannah Kelly at support@dvigear.com for more information�

We are looking for resellers and distributors of our products domestically as well as internationally. We offer quality products with competitive prices. In addition, we will gladly assist with design of digital connectivity applications when needed. Let us know how we can be an asset to your company.

Thanks for reading!

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