CD\\DVD copy protection is a term that is reminiscent of the days of old when you would still use audio cassettes to record the songs of choice. If you will remember, in the old days the manufacturers or cassettes would have omitted the little tabs at the bottom of the cassette that would permit the user to record over them. While this was great in the case of accidentally hitting the record and the play buttons together, it became a nuisance when you wanted to reuse tapes you were no longer listening to. It was only a matter of time before enterprising youngsters figured out that a piece of notebook paper crumbled up and put into the holes would work just as well as if the tabs had been left in place. Thus the override of the cassette copy protection was born.

CD\\DVD devices have their own set of copy protection systems. Usually the goal is not so much to prevent the user from copying over the data that is stored on the CD\\DVD but instead to guarantee that the data that is stored on them will not be copied onto other CD\\DVD devices. If this is a mouthful, consider the implication that this fact has on your enjoyment of the CD\\DVD media you currently own.

While DVD Shrink is specifically written to allow you to back up DVD movies, the reality of the matter shows that in an attempt to protect the data stored on the DVD, the manufacturer has included a host of elements that are supposed to preserve the integrity of the copyrighted material. For example, you might find that your DVD contains a number of bad sectors and other errors which are not mentioned on your DVD covers but which might wreak havoc with your DVD player, especially the portable DVD players that are becoming so popular.

Even more prominent are the problems associated with the copy protection that is part of the CDs. Covers do not showcase that this kind of protection is in use, and many a user has grown quite frustrated when the car stereo would simply not play a CD. Rates of returns to the online giant CD Universe have skyrocketed, and many times the allegedly defective device was in good working order, but because of the CD duplication protection it would not play properly on some equipment. At this point in time there is still a tug of war going on between CD manufacturers and consumers and it is anybody’s guess who will win.