Our take...
Previous reports of software able to create 'back-up' copies of BD have focused on the ability to create copies of discs - physical or otherwise - rather than the extraction of the digital file for illegal digital distribution. Attempted BD rips have been available for some time, typically lower quality 720p resolution with file sizes less than a few gigabytes. The level of compression required meant that the downloaded content is rendered far from its original hi-def quality. The rips now appearing are sized from 3GB to 8GB, suggesting far less compression for higher quality and higher resolution, including full 1080p, a reportedly comparable version of the original BD content. The speed at which these files can be uploaded for distribution - as demonstrated by Iron Man - seems to make a nonsense of the earlier BD claims of unbreakable, adaptive copy-protection, a principle reason given for some US studio support for the format. Consumers able to process this type of illegally downloaded hi-def content and then view it in full 1080p have invested heavily in PC-based home entertainment systems and as such have effectively existed outside the packaged media environment and were unlikely to buy into BD in the first place. BD's ace-in-the-hole remains the BD-Live value added material: unlikely to be a function on pirated discs and unavailable through download, this may still serve to lure even these consumers into purchasing legitimate versions.