The following is an excerpt of the article entitled DVD. For the sake of convenience, the terms Region 0, Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6, Region 7 and Region 8 redirect to this page. DVD is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for storing data, including movies with high video and sound quality. ... The following is an excerpt of the article entitled DVD. For the sake of convenience, the terms Region 0, Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6, Region 7 and Region 8 redirect to this page. ... The following is an excerpt of the article entitled DVD. For the sake of convenience, the terms Region 0, Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6, Region 7 and Region 8 redirect to this page. ...

Each DVD-Video disc contains one or more region codes, denoting the area[s] of the world in which distribution and playback are intended. The commercial DVD-Video player specification dictates that a player must only play discs that contain its region code. In theory, this allows the motion picture studios to control the various aspects of a release (including content, date and price) on a region-by-region basis. In practice, many DVD players allow playback of any disc, or can be modified to do so. Entirely independent of encryption, region coding pertains to regional lockout, which originated in the video game industry. Regional lockout is the programming practice, code, or chip used to prevent the playing of media designed for a device from the country where it is marketed on the version of the same device marketed in another country. ... A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ...

Typically, a DVD-Video disc's outer packaging bears a symbol indicating its region code.

See a world map showing region codes (http://www.robertsdvd.com/world.gif) Official DVD Forum region code symbols This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Western Europe is distinguished from Eastern Europe by differences of history and culture rather than by geography. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... Central America is the region of North America located between the southern border of Mexico and the northwest border of Colombia, in South America. ... Map of Oceania. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Africa is the largest of the three great southward projections from the main mass of the Earths surface. ... Eastern Europe is, by convention, that part of Europe from the Ural and Caucasus mountains in the East to an arbitrarily chosen boundary in the West. ... The Indian subcontinent is the peninsular region of South Asia, which includes India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, usually also Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and some disputed territory currently controlled by China, and sometimes Myanmar. ... In this map of China, the light-coloured areas represent Mainland China, while yellow coloured area refers to Taiwan. ... An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight. ... Legend of the Seas moored at San Diego, California A cruise ship, or less commonly cruise liner, is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the amenities of the ship are considered an essential part of the experience. ...

European Region 2 DVDs may be sub-coded "D1" through "D4." "D1" identifies a UK-only release. "D2" and "D3" identify European DVDs that are not sold in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. "D4" identifies DVDs that are distributed throughout Europe.

Any combination of regions can be applied to a single disc. For example, a DVD designated Region 2/4 is suitable for playback in Western Europe, Oceania and any other Region 2 or Region 4 area. A so-called "Region 0" disc (actually coded Region 1/2/3/4/5/6) is meant to be playable worldwide.

The term "Region 0" also describes DVD players that were designed or modified to incorporate Regions 1-6 simultaneously, thereby providing compatibility with virtually any disc, irrespective of region[s]. This apparent solution was popular in the early days of the DVD format, but studios quickly responded by adjusting discs to refuse to play in such machines. This system is known as "Regional Coding Enhancement" or RCE.

Nowadays, many "multi-region" DVD players defeat regional lockout and RCE by automatically identifying and matching a disc's region code and/or allowing the user to manually select a particular region. Others simply bypass the region code check entirely. Some manufacturers of DVD players now freely supply information on how to disable regional lockout, and on some recent models, it appears to be disabled by default.

Many view region code enforcement as a violation of WTO free trade agreements; however, no legal rulings have yet been made in this area. The word violation, when used alone, has several possible meanings in the English language. ... For other uses of the initials WTO, see WTO (disambiguation). ... The Wikipedia community considers the subject of this article to the encyclopedia. ...