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Former RealDVD project manager contradicts Real

May 11, 2009 So last week RealNetworks was sanctioned by the judge in the RealDVD case for destroying evidence, namely notebooks kept by former Real project manager Nicole Hamilton documenting development of the DVD ripping software. Hamilton contradicts some of Real's case in a comment she posted to Ben Sheffner's Copyrights and Campaigns blog Friday.

Notably, she says when the company went to the DVD Copy Control Assoc. for a license to use CSS copy protection, she was told not to tell them they were developing DVD ripping software:

I was the contact person at Real charged with arranging the license and was instructed not to disclose that we were building a ripper, precisely because we expected that if DVD CCA knew what we intended, they would not issue the license.

The DVD CCA maintains in the lawsuit that Real's CSS license doesn't allow it to rip movies from DVDs for playback on other devices. Real maintains it does, and that RealDVD, which rips movies from disc to a computer for later playback, doesn't circumvent CSS copy protection when transferring DVD content to a hard drive.

Of course, Hamilton's comment may just be juicy behind-the-scenes stuff, who knows what made it onto the court record. Much of the proceedings have been closed to the public.

Anyone placing any bets on who the judge will side with?

Posted by Jennifer Netherby on May 11, 2009 | Comments (0)