Apparently responding to reports that its copy protection technology makes CDs unplayable on some players and computers, Midbar Ltd. announced Jan. 20 at Midem 2002 in Cannes, France that its latest version “resolves all known issues of playability encountered to date.” The Cactus Data Shield (CDS)-200.0.4 “passed a stringent set of tests conducted in coordination between Midbar and major recording companies,” Midbar reported.

The results show that this upgrade of the CDS-200 enables nearly 100 percent playability on a large scale of different devices including CD players, portable car stereos, portable CD devices, DVDs, PCs and professional audio systems. The system also proved to maintain the sound quality of the original recording.

To date, a collective 8 million CDS copy controlled music CDs have been commercially released into the U.S. and European markets.

CDS, Midbar’s proprietary and core technology provides the infrastructure to secure and control the mass distribution of copyright material on optical media.

Midbar’s R&D plans include the implementation of copy control technology to DVD, and development of a secure solution for digital distribution that can be integrated into existing online music.