New technology designed to thwart DVD theft makes discs unplayable until they're activated at the cash register.
A chip smaller than the head of a pin is placed on a DVD along with a thin coating that blocks a DVD player from reading critical information on the disc. At the register, the chip is activated and sends an electrical pulse through the coating, turning it clear and making the disc playable.
The radio frequency identification chip is made by NXP Semiconductors, based in the Netherlands, and the radio frequency activation technology comes from Kestrel Wireless Inc., based in Emeryville.
The two companies are talking to Hollywood studios and expect to announce deals this summer, Kestrel Chief Executive Paul Atkinson said.
The companies said their technology also can be used to protect electric shavers, inkjet cartridges, flash-memory drives and even flat-screen TV sets by preventing some critical element from functioning unless activated.
Retail theft of entertainment products, including video games, accounts for as much as $400 million in annual losses, according to the Entertainment Merchants Association.
