China-based Fengtao Software has recently released DVDFab Passkey, a Windows-based driver that works on-the-fly to unprotect encrypted movie DVDs and Blu-ray discs.

For DVD, DVDFab Passkey removes all DVD copy protections, like CSS, CPRM, CPPM, RC, RCE, APS, UOPs, ARccOS, RipGuard, FluxDVD, CORE X2, etc. For Blu-ray, it removes all known AACS and BD+ copy protections, Region Code, BD-Live and UOPs. As a result, the software allows users to watch any region DVD on their region specific DVD drive and player software and also watch Blu-ray disc without HDCP-compliant graphics card and without HDCP-compliant display.

The developers of the software claim that it allows users to chose among many software players to access unencrypted DVD and Blu-ray disc content. According to Fengtao, the DVDFab Passkey has been tested to work with 1 Click DVD Copy Pro - Advanced I/O Mode Only, Nero Recode, AVS Copy, DVD neXt COPY V3 and 4 (without the machinist.dll), DVD Shrink - Pathplayer Off with some content, DVDSubEdit (quick check for forced subs), ImgBurn (Read Mode), VLC (play VOB with File->Open), WinDVD5 (play from original without UOPs), Roxio Creator 9 in several modes/modules, DVDRanger without machinist.dll, Roxio 2010 with I/O Mode set to 'Advanced' under the General tab, CloneDVD, PowerDVD 9 Ultra, etc.

The company is currently offering a beta version of the software, which is available in many languages and supports the latest for AACS MKB v19, meaning that it is capable of processing the Blu-Ray movies which include the v19 Media Key Block (MKB).

The MKB has been released by the AACS LA and it is an updated version of the special code placed on the Blu-ray media that is essential for the authentication and thus the reproduction of Blu-ray movies on updated Blu-Ray players.

Chinese-based Fentgtao Software is not the only company that releases software for bypassing the copy protection of DVD and Blu-ray movie discs. Slysoft, a software compan ybased on Antigua, West Indies, is also providing the AnyDVD HD software for this purpose.

Based in the specific countries, both companies are not affected by the U.S. and European copyright laws.