MagicGate (MG) is a

copy-protection Copy protection, also known as content protection, copy prevention and copy restriction, describes measures to enforce copyright by preventing the reproduction of software, films, music, and other media. Copy protection is most commonly found on ...

technology introduced by

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

in 1999 as part of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI). It works by encrypting the content on the device and using MagicGate chips in both the storage device and the reader to enforce control over how files are copied. MagicGate encryption was introduced with Sony's first

digital audio player A portable media player (PMP) (also including the related digital audio player (DAP)) is a portable consumer electronics device capable of storing and playing digital media such as audio, images, and video files. The data is typically stored o ...

s, with the related

OpenMG OpenMG is a digital rights management (DRM) system developed by Sony for managing and protecting digital music data on a personal computer. It was originally designed for audio files in ATRAC3 format; the compliant software, e.g. Sony SonicStage ...

technology being its software counterpart. Since then the encryption has been rolled out to other Sony devices - it is used in the memory cards of the

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...

and, {{As of, 2004, lc=on, has been introduced into all of Sony's

Memory Stick The Memory Stick is a removable flash memory card format, originally launched by Sony in late 1998. In addition to the original Memory Stick, this family includes the Memory Stick PRO, a revision that allows greater maximum storage capacity an ...

products. Some devices will only accept Memory Sticks which use MagicGate technology. All

Memory Stick Duo The Memory Stick is a removable flash memory card format, originally launched by Sony in late 1998. In addition to the original Memory Stick, this family includes the Memory Stick PRO, a revision that allows greater maximum storage capacity and ...

cards equipped with MagicGate can be identified by a notch located on the rear end of the card.

Support

Few (

USB Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard that establishes specifications for cables, connectors and protocols for connection, communication and power supply (interfacing) between computers, peripherals and other computers. A broad ...

PC Card In computing, PC Card is a configuration for computer parallel communication peripheral interface, designed for laptop computers. Originally introduced as PCMCIA, the PC Card standard as well as its successors like CardBus were defined and devel ...

) Memory Stick-compatible

card reader A card reader is a data input device that reads data from a card-shaped storage medium. The first were punched card readers, which read the paper or cardboard punched cards that were used during the first several decades of the computer industry ...

s support secure MagicGate. Although manufacturers list Memory Stick Pro/Pro Duo (MG) compatibility, where MG means MagicGate, they may not support the security portion of MagicGate. This becomes important when purchasing a card reader/writer for use with

SonicStage SonicStage is a discontinued software product from Sony that is used for managing portable devices when they are plugged into a computer running Microsoft Windows. It comprises a music player and library manager, similar to iTunes, Windows Media ...

and

Sony CONNECT , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

as even Sony itself does not fully support MagicGate on certain readers. Non-MagicGate memory card reader/writers do not show up in SonicStage, with the notable exception of Sony Ericsson phones. Current Sony devices that support MagicGate DRM as of summer 2007: * Most Memory Stick capable Sony VAIO notebooks and desktops *

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...

– The PlayStation Portable in service mode will only boot to Memory Sticks with MagicGate enabled *

PlayStation Vita The PlayStation Vita (PS Vita, or Vita) is a handheld video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 17, 2011, and in North America, Europe, and other international territo ...

- Used for verifying memory cards and PSP Emulation. *

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...

* MSAC-US40 USB Memory Stick Card Reader/Writer. *

Current Sony Devices that do not support MagicGate DRM as of summer 2007: * All U.S. Sony Ericsson phones – most Sony Ericsson phones should show up in SonicStage for MP3/AAC transfer * VGP-MCA10 PCMCIA Card Reader/Writer – does not sport the MagicGate logo * Sony 17 in 1 Card Reader/Writer MRW62E/S1/181 * Sony

AVCHD AVCHD (Advanced Video Coding High Definition) is a file-based format for the digital recording and playback of high-definition video. It is H.264 and Dolby AC-3 packaged into the MPEG transport stream, with a set of constraints designed around t ...

camcorders such as HDR-UX5/UX7 Current Sony Devices that do not support MagicGate DRM as of summer 2007, but the support may be possible via future firmware updates: *

Mylo Myles MacInnes (born 10 May 1978), better known by his stage name Mylo, is a Scottish electronic musician and record producer. His 2004 album '' Destroy Rock & Roll'' peaked at number 26 in the UK Albums Chart. He is best known for his 2005 si ...

Personal Communicator – Mylo's 1GB internal memory can be used with SonicStage and supports OpenMG *

Sony Reader The Sony Reader was a line of e-book readers manufactured by Sony, who produced the first commercial E Ink e-reader with the Sony Librie in 2004. It used an electronic paper display developed by E Ink Corporation, was viewable in direct sunlig ...

portable e-reader PRS-500 & PRS-600 – may show up in SonicStage for MP3/AAC transfer.

State of DRM

In March 2009, Sony Electronics announced they were phasing out the Sony CONNECT service in favor of Windows Media Audio & Windows Media DRM, though they have not officially announced plans to continue a Windows Media DRM music service, either. As of June 2009, the future of MagicGate DRM was unknown. MagicGate slots were still a part of the default Vaio configuration as of May 2010.

References

Digital rights management systems

Support

State of DRM

See also

References