"EggHd" wrote in message
...

Do we really know that the copy protection is causing this?

Yes, beyond any shadow of a doubt. CDs don't have that problem, but
these are not CDs. At least not according to the (S-P) standard. CDs with
copy protection are not Redbook compliant, and therefore are not guaranteed
to work at all in standards compliant players. Sony is (or was, I haven't
kept up with it) pursuing litigation against several labels releasing these
discs with the CD logo on them, because they aren't complaint and don't work
in standard players. If it doesn't play absolutely the same in any device
carrying the CD logo, then it's not a CD and cannot contain the logo.

Additionally, in the players where it does work, many (and I mean
*many*) people have reported clicks and pops, skipping tracks, and tracks
that freeze the player or just refuse to play. And it's not only old gear,
as EMI is claiming, it is old gear, new gear, etc. The point, though, is if
it doesn't play back in *any* player that is complaint with the standard,
then it's being advertised as something it is not. That's fraud (not to
mention unlicensed use of the CD mark), which is a worse crime than illegal
downloading. Especially considering the scale at which it is being
committed. This isn't thousands of people stealing a single copy, it's one
company releasing thousands of fraudulent discs. If a company like Microsoft
(who everyone loves to hate) had done something like this, you can bet that
they would be in court already.

ryanm