Digital entertainment group says new accords will make 'buy once, play anywhere' a reality

Earlier this week, the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE), a coalition spanning every industry involved in digital entertainment, announced an agreement on a common file format to be used by all participating content providers, services and device manufacturers.

The DECE claims the agreement will make "buy once, play anywhere" a reality.

The agreement could eventually have a far-reaching impact on the self-service and kiosk sectors, necessitating widespread changes to business and selling models, as consumers could eventually no longer need to go to a specific location to rent, buy or download a movie and will have no physical purchase to make or rental to carry around with them.

The common file format is an open specification for digital entertainment, like DVD or Blu-ray, that can be licensed by any company to create a product that will play on any service or device built to DECE specifications — whether via Internet, mobile, cable, IPTV — according to the DECE.

The DECE also announced vendor selection for a cloud-based authentication and account management service hub allowing consumers access to the digital entertainment and the approval of five DECE-compatible digital rights management (DRM) solutions.

The news means the entertainment industry has reached key milestones toward establishing the first open market for digital content distribution, according to DECE.

The five DECE-compatible DRMs are Adobe Flash Access; CMLA-OMA V2, the Marlin DRM Open Standard; Microsoft PlayReady; and Widevine. Compatibility with multiple DRMs will ensure content can be played back via streaming or download on a wide variety of services and devices.

Twenty-one companies joined DECE last year — including Adobe, Cox Communications, DivX, Motorola, Netflix, Neustar, Nokia, Tesco and Zoran — bringing DECE's total membership to 48 companies across the entertainment spectrum, from software to hardware, retail, infrastructure and delivery.

"The digital entertainment marketplace is on the cusp of a new era of rapid growth," DECE president Mitch Singer said.