How do I copyright a CD or DVD??

Do you want to "copyright" or make it "copy-proof"

Copyright is a legal thing.

Copy-proof is basically impossible. If it can be played or downloaded it can be copied.

 

Difficult to do, but, what is the content?

Put it this way... Microsoft has unlimited $$$ to spend and they have a LOT to lose from people copying XBOX games, and the games can still be copied if you're savvy. So, given that even MS who has billions at stake, it is unlikely you can make your CD copy-proof.

But you can certainly lock the content, depending on what it is, to avert all but the most professional and determined of hackers.

So, what's on the CD? Pictures? Documents? Software? The answer will depend on what the CD content is, but you certainly have lots of options.

 

Well, unfortunately, protecting images is one of the hardest things to do, because what the user is seeing is really the source - it's not like software where you compile it into a program.

Having said that, let me see if I understand the problem correctly... your wife, a skilled photog, takes pics of kids @ school events, and sells them to parents. The problem is one parent buys them and shares them - correct?

Anything you implement is probably going to have some impact on the user. The ultimate secure way would be to use a program that encrypts the images and the person must use a viewer program and you give out the viewer program on the CD along with the pictures... every time someone installs this viewer, they must contact you for a password, and this way you keep tabs on everyone who has a password. If someone sends me the CD, I install the program, and just like installing Windows, it says I must contact you for an access code, and if I use someone else's access code, it won't work. This is absolutely secure, but, it's a pain in the butt for your users. Also, if someone wanted to use the image as their background wallpaper or something, it would stop them from doing this.

Another method would be to put all the images into a PDF file, and then password protect it. You can "lock" a PDF File so you must enter a password to open it, and it also can prevent you printing the file, or doing a print-screen to grab the images. This is easy and cheap for you, and only a slight PITA for the users. They just need to remember the password. But that doesn't prevent one customer from sending the file AND the password to another customer who can then open it.

A third option would be to lock the images in a PDF file, and use a program like this

http://www.pdfstore.com/details.asp?ProdID=806

So the person doesn't actually get the password, they just download this program with lets them open the PDF. If they send the program to another parent, it won't work on their computer, it must come from you. The benefit of this is you could make it so the unlock program allows the PDF file to be printed or something, so if a parent wanted to print pics for grandma, they could do so.

But, anytime the person has access to the source file (the actual image), they can pretty much do whatever they want. There is no built-in image protection mechanism in Windows, so anything you use to protect them is going to be a download.

Another option would be that one thing in Windows that DOES have a built-in copy protection mechanism is Windows Media Player. You could make a slideshow of the images and make it a WMP file, then when the person tries to play it, it would tell them they need the appropriate license, which they get from you.


All of these are varying levels of pain-in-the-ass, but it all comes down to how secure do you want to make it, vs how much do you want to impact sales.


Another thing to think about is to put the images on the Internet on a secure website. You could charge people to get access to the site. That way, you can see who is coming to the site and who is viewing the pictures, and if one account is being used from 8 different computers, you know something is up. Furthermore, you could do what the online image sites do and allow viewing of low-res versions of the pictures, and if they want to buy the "real" ones, they get sent a hard copy. I believe you can do this right through flickr or other sites.


I know none of these are ideal solutions, but I don't think an ideal solution exists... there will always be some negative impact to the user on any copy protection you implement, the only question is where do you want to set the threshold. You could also try guilt-ing them into paying by putting a little banner at the bottom saying something about please not copying the pictures without permission and how it's your livelihood or warning about big penalties for illegal copy, etc, etc.

 

+1

However, I was also thinking of "playing" something versus displaying images. Mike's given some good comments there, but now I understand what you're trying to do I'll comment.....

I'd suggest forgetting about CD/DVD distribution completely (!) PITA for you /your wife and the "secure" solutions Mike alluded to, while technically sound will add a substantially bigger PITA - Both to you and your customers [Gotta be online, you've got maintain a "license server" etc etc.]

However, there are a ton of "pro level" hosting sites to which you upload low res versions that'll look OK on screen, albeit with a watermark of your choice thru' the middle. They won't print worth a damn. You then simply give the thieving parents the address of the site, and it'll open an index page - Give this to parents, grandma, the kids etc - They then find their own images and can buy 'em (at whatever sizes / prices you decide). The host does the printing, takes their cut and sends you a check (typically monthly) - Lots of 'em will do t-shirts, mugs, coasters and all that stuff as well (nice profit in that crap!)

I suggest you/she go and check a few out - Play with the site as both a prospective buyer (how easy/expensive is it to get my pix etc?) and as a prospective client of the site - Good help? Product range? Any "members discussion forums? Free trial? etc.

HTH, Cheers,
Ian

 

This.

 

Since your wife took the pics, she already owns what is called an "implied copyright". While not perfect, you can use a "key generator" to put a license with each CD/DVD. It won't prevent total pirating, but I doubt the soccer moms will spend much time trying to crack it. Here's the link to an inexpensive one.

http://download.cnet.com/CD-Key-Generator/3000-2216_4-10704258.html

 

Some interesting solutions here in this thread but at the end of the day they are all still useless, soccer moms might not have a clue but their kids will (and you only need one person to break the protection before it spreads again). Tho there are 1 or 2 DRM solutions out there that do stop/limit/delay redistribution at the end of the day it involves installing software on the users PC/accessing the internet and in the long run it will affect all future sales once word spreads that you have DRM. Losing business to parents spreading your pics is still better than no business...

The only real solution is what Fast_ian suggested and that is to make it pay per picture Avoid taking too many group photos and try and get individuals (that's what the parents want!).

My friend does sports photography on weekends and he puts the pics online which are watermarked. The cheapest option is picking each photo they want and sending them decent sized prints, if they want a digital copy as well thats extra, don't send them RAW files keep them jpg.

Making it priced per picture instead of per CD/DVD collection will limit redistribution, people will always redistribute things that come free or cheap but once you start charging $15* a picture you see things change plus they wouldn't bother buying pictures of other children.

http://www.smugmug.com/photos/professional-photo-hosting-sell-photos/ here is the type of site Fast_ian was talking about. I'm sure there are others like it.


Good Luck!

* - made up number.

 

Excellent post. The DRM and key generator solutions are worse than the problem in this type of business.

 

well, I've come to this a bit late. I've had this issue too... and I'm still hosting images on my site that are high enough resolution to be printed relatively large without too much degradation... even one Fchatter has boasted to me that he printed a said image, and it looks great framed in large print on his wall. He never once considered it wrong morally or legally. He'll remain nameless...

One way to prevent printing is making a video slide show rather than a jpg slide show. The image resolution will be dumbed down to 480p; and the most that can be done with it is ... copied and watched.

Setting up a "proof" site could help, like smugbug or whatever it's called (there is software I'll be installing perhaps before July I'll let you know about that works far better than smugbug... of course, it isn't free.)

In the video slideshow, ever so often, a slide with her proof site could be listed; at which point, who cares if it's copied... mom's want pictures of their kids! They are marketing the content for her directly to the people who want it

Best
-Isaac

 

you might try putting a 'watermark' over each photo, so that the photo can be viewed (or even printed), but the photo would not be usable unless they actually purchase the photo from you (without the watermark).

 

^yup

and you can always go to gov site for small fee to officially reg. the copyright. I have a few. But as soon as you created and/or published that item, it is copyrighted.

Hey enzothecat, bring back the cat :|

r