Specifications

CD-i FAQ 2000 Edition Revised February 21, 2001
Latest version and more CD-i info: http://www.icdia.org
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10. Copying CD-i discs
10.1 Are CD-i titles still copyrighted?
Yes, they certaintly are. It is a common misunderstanding that software for a platform that is no
longer available through the regular retail channels is released from copyrights. This is not the
case. The same goes for other platforms like Amiga, Atari or MSX. All CD-i titles are copyrighted
and may not be copied for illegal purposes such as loan, retail, or rent as long as the copyright
owner has not officially declared that a particular title has been released into 'public domain'.
Philips sold its entire consumer CD-i catalogue to Infogrames Multimedia from France in 1998,
which now owns the rights of virtually all consumer CD-i titles.
Consumer CD-i titles are still for sale trough various mail order companies. Please refer to: 11.6
Where can I buy CD-i titles? for more information.
However, it might still be a good idea to backup some or all of your CD-i titles, since it might be
increasingly harder to replace them once they got scratched or broken. Therefore, this section of
the FAQ gives you some information on how to do this.
10.2 Are CD-i discs copy-protected?
No, there is no copy-protection mechanism for CD-i implemented either in software (CD-i titles) or
hardware (CD-i players). Allmost all CD-i titles can be copied, and any correct copy of a CD-i title
can be played on any CD-i player. A CD-i player can read CD-R discs as if they were normal
CDs, they do not need to be modified to accept these discs as is the case with the Sony
Playstation.
It may however occasionally occure that a discs can not be copied. This has nothing to do with a
possible copy protection, but is the result of the layout of the disc. Refer to: 10.5 Why can't I copy
a particular CD-i title? for more information.
10.3 Will every CD-Recorder be able to write CD-i discs?
Most modern CD-Recorder can write a CD-i discs without any problems. Since CD-i uses mode 2
sectors, which is a common sector format in computing environments (it is also used in for
example Video-CD and Photo-CD), most recorder support the writing of mode 2 sectors (refer to:
3.6 What's CD-i's sector format? What about mode 1 and 2, form 1 and 2? for more information
about CD-i's sector format).
You might check the support for writing CD-i of your recorder by looking on its packaging or in its
manual for one of the following indications: Mode 2, CD-ROM/XA, CD-XA, Photo-CD or Video-
CD. If the recorder supports one of these formats, it can write mode 2 sector and hence can write
CD-i discs.
10.4 What software can be used to copy a CD-i title?
You can use most CD-Recording software that allows you to make one-on-one copies of CDs, as
long as this software can make an exact sector-replica of a disc and it supports the reading a
writing of mode 2 sectors. Due to CD-i's realtime behaviour and the interleaving of audio, video
and program data, it is very important that the software makes an exact copy, and does not
reformat the data again by itself.
It is also not possible to only copy parts of a particular CD-i title, nor is it possible to combine
several CD-i titles onto one CD-R disc. This is due to the fact that the software on a CD-i discs