The spelling of the word "DeCSS" is interesting because it includes a combination of letters that may not be intuitive to English speakers. The IPA phonetic transcription of the word would be [diːsisiɛs]. The "De" in "DeCSS" is pronounced as "dee" and the "CSS" is pronounced as "see-ess-ess". The double "S" in CSS is pronounced with a hissing sound, as in the word "hiss". This spelling is specific to the computer programming context of the tool, which is used for decrypting DVDs.
DeCSS is an abbreviation for "De-Content Scramble System." It refers to a software program that enables the decryption of encrypted DVDs. The Content Scramble System (CSS) is a form of encryption used to protect digital video content on DVDs, preventing unauthorized copying and piracy. DeCSS, on the other hand, acts as a decryption tool specifically designed to bypass the encryption employed by CSS.
DeCSS gained significant attention and controversy in the late 1990s and early 2000s when it was created and distributed online. It was primarily developed to allow individuals to play DVD content on computers running non-Windows operating systems, as the official DVD player software was limited to Windows platforms at that time. However, due to its ability to decrypt CSS-encrypted DVDs, DeCSS was also used for unauthorized copying and distribution of copyrighted material, leading to legal disputes.
The development and dissemination of DeCSS led to extensive debates and legal battles, exploring issues of copyright infringement, informational speech, and the right to access or reverse engineer proprietary technology. These controversies brought attention to the concept of digital rights management and the limitations it imposes on individuals' abilities to use and manipulate copyrighted digital content.
In summary, DeCSS is a software program that decrypts DVDs encrypted using the Content Scramble System. It played a significant role in sparking debates and legal battles surrounding copyright protection and digital rights management.
The word "DeCSS" is an abbreviation for "De-Content Scramble System". It was coined in the late 1990s when a computer programmer named Jon Lech Johansen developed a software program to bypass the Content Scramble System (CSS) encryption used to protect the content on DVDs. The name DeCSS reflects the purpose of the software, which is to decrypt or remove the CSS encryption from DVDs, allowing the user to access the content freely.