GERMAN MOVIES ON DVD and BLU-RAY - PART 2
REGION CODE SWITCHING and MULTI-REGION PLAYERS

 
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DVD Guide for German Films:
DVD Guide | DVD Guide 2 | Region Codes | Blu-ray Codes | Films

Bypassing or Changing the Regional Code
Naturally, as soon as Hollywood and the DVD producers decided to divide and conquer the world with their region codes, other people were thinking up ways to bypass them. Soon there were "fixes" for both DVD players and computer DVD-ROM drives. (Newer computer DVD drives usually allow the easy switching of regional codes, but you have a limit of five changes. More below.) Some manufacturers also began to sell "code-free" or "region-free" DVD players that could play DVDs from any of the six regions. Some of these region-free players are also capable of displaying the video on either a PAL (Germany, most of Europe) or NTSC (USA, Canada) monitor. Newer digital TV sets and monitors will usually work with these special players, but it is best to verify that.

Is It Really That Simple?
Of course not! Things can get get technically complicated when dealing with region-free DVD players or changing the code settings on older computer DVD-ROM drives (which is a perfectly legal thing to do). But if you want to watch German or Hollywood Region 2 movies in German, it is essential to have either a multicode DVD player or a computer with a DVD drive. (The situation with Blu-ray Discs (BD) is a bit different, since most BD titles are released without any region coding.)

Code-free DVD Player Play DVD movies from Germany or anywhere in the world www.220-electronics.com

Computer DVD
Early DVD-ROM drives were code-free, but those sold after January 1, 2000 are set to a specific code, depending on where they are sold, and will only allow the code to be switched five times. After the fifth change, the drive is permanently set to the region code that was last selected. (See our detailed how-to guide on exactly how to switch the codes, if your computer's DVD drive doesn't do that easily.

But DVD on a computer offers the advantage of not having to worry about converting from German PAL to U.S. NTSC or vice versa. Since the computer image is digital, the PAL/NTSC issue doesn't exist—unless you want to export the picture to a TV monitor. Some computers can handle that, while other can't. Don't confuse DVD-ROM with video DVD. DVD-ROM is for data only. A DVD-ROM drive can read both regular CD-ROM and DVD discs, but the computer must have the proper software and hardware to play back DVD video. The disadvantage is that you are generally tied to the computer for viewing.

Multi-Region (Code-Free) DVD Players
You can find "code-free" or multi-region DVD players for sale online and in electronics stores. These are DVD players made by Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba and other respected names, but altered to allow playing DVDs from all six regions. (This chip alteration may void the manufacturer's warranty, but some vendors offer their own.) Some so-called "zero-code" DVD players may not work with DVD discs from certain studios or certain regions. Most code-free DVD players now on the market are the "switchable" type (usually using the player's remote control) that can read any DVD disc and code. But a lack of standardization among various DVD makers means that one DVD disc may play on your player, but another may not.

There are also good multi-region players made by Pioneer, Sony, and others (with a full warranty) that automatically detect the DVD's region code (or the Blu-ray code) and play it. But some of these may need a PAL monitor to display a German Region 2 DVD properly. Others have the ability to convert the PAL picture to the U.S. NTSC standard. Always make sure any player you buy will work with the TV monitor or TV set you have. For instance, my Pioneer multi-region player displays German DVDs just fine on my newer flat-screen LCD monitor, but does not work with an older LCD projection TV.

Is It Legal to Bypass the Codes?
Since DVD regional coding—also known as "zone locking"—exists merely for marketing (and pricing) purposes, and has nothing to do with copyright or copy protection, most people compare "breaking the codes" to reading a German book in Australia, Britain, the U.S. or another English-speaking country. If you legally obtained either the book or the DVD, it shouldn't matter where you read it or view it. We're not talking about making copies, defeating copy guards or anything else that would violate copyright laws. We just want to watch a video that we legally obtained in the first place. But it is important to point out that no U.S court decision has established either that regional coding might be an illegal "restraint of trade" or that it may be legal to defeat the regional DVD codes. (In October 2005, the Australian High Court did rule that DVD region codes were a breach of fair trade.)

Changing the region code setting on a computer DVD drive is not only possible, but also perfectly legal. Newer computers make this almost automatic and very easy (but still impose a five-time limit), but for older computer models we offer a how-to guide to switching DVD code settings. The legality of altering a DVD-ROM's firmware so that it is code-free is still unclear. We don't deal with that issue here. (I also have no experience with switching Blu-ray region codes, but most Blu-ray Discs are region-free.)

Some DVD vendors may not be willing to ship a DVD title to a country with a region code that is different from the disc. (Amazon.de does ship German DVDs or Blu-ray Discs to the U.S.) Since this is a decision made by each vendor, you need to check on a particular vendor's shipping policy.

NEXT > Films in German on Blu-ray and DVD
MORE > How to switch the region code on a computer

Note: None of the information on this page should be construed as legal advice. We are merely pointing out the regional code situation, as it applies to those who would like to view foreign films on DVD. Regional codes have nothing to do with the obviously illegal practice of breaking the DVD protection codes designed to prevent illegal digital copying.

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MORE > DVD Region Codes
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