The Shifted Librarian has an interesting post of an article about the Harry Potter DVD being released without Macrovision.

"Warner Home Video has chosen not to copy-protect the home versions of its blockbuster movie Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in major markets, including the US and UK. This means people can go out and buy a DVD or VHS, connect the analogue output of their player to a recorder - either analogue or digital - and make free copies for friends.

Usually, hot new movies are protected by Macrovision, which tinkers with the analogue picture signal so that it can be viewed on a TV set but not copied.[New Scientist]

There's another reason this is good news. Macrovision also effects the video quality of movies. It's one of the reasons a lot of people don't like it. Here's hoping that LOTR is released without it too.