OS X and Linux: CableCARD, DIRECTV, Dish, HD DVD, Blu-ray?
To sum up Chris' post, he is basically saying that Windows is the only OS supported by CableCard etc because they got their ass in gear and found out what the content providers wanted for protection and gave it to them. Microsoft saw market potential and went after it, that is all there is to it. The situation will not get any prettier until the major studios can figure out what sort of business model they want now that TV/VCR combo isn't the only player in the market.
Since OS X is more closed by nature, it will not be as hard
to develop a playback solution for.
Apple basically handles all of its own drivers (since it controls the
hardware), so that takes a little off of development. Since QuickTime (or whatever DVD application
they ship) really doesn’t work in a DirectShow-like fashion, they could get
Blu-ray (or HD DVD) playback gong using the same sort of protected sandbox as
InterVideo and Cyberlink do. Part of the
reason for PMP in Windows is to open up playback of this media to other
applications, notably Windows Media Player and Media Center. This way, it’s all integrated and it
flows. I hate the sight of PowerDVD
opening on top of my Media Center UI just to play back an HD DVD.
No matter how they do, they will be forced to the same
restrictions any other AACS-certified playback device/application. They will have to respect ICT, they will have
to respect HDCP (which brings up a good point, do they have any HDCP enabled
components shipping?), etc.