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Just a few months ago it seemed the issue had been resolved, but the situation has returned. Disney+ users in many European countries have noticed a lack of Dolby Vision support when watching movies and TV series. It turns out the changes stem from another stage of a patent dispute over the technologies used in video encoding. What’s more, the consequences are far greater than before. In addition to Dolby Vision, content available in 3D has also disappeared from the platform.
Dolby Vision has disappeared from Disney+ in 11 European Union countries
Problems with Dolby Vision on Disney+ are not entirely new. Earlier this year, users in Europe noticed that the popular HDR format had stopped working in the app. At that time the issue was mainly tied to Germany, and after a few weeks Disney restored the feature in most European Union countries. Now the issue has returned with renewed force. InterDigital announced that it had won a patent proceeding before the Unified Patent Court of the European Union. According to the ruling, Disney infringed a patent covering certain image encoding technologies related to the HEVC format. As a result, the court issued an injunction covering eleven European Union countries. That is why users have once again lost access to Dolby Vision on the platform. Disney may still appeal the decision, but the whole process could take many months. Until then the platform is forced to restrict the availability of certain features. Importantly, the problem does not affect all regions of the world. In the United States and many other countries Dolby Vision still works without any restrictions. European subscribers are therefore in a much worse position than users in other parts of the globe.
3D movies also disappeared, but 4K and HDR10 remain available
The consequences of the court's decision are not limited to Dolby Vision. It turned out that Disney+ also lost films and series available in 3D. This is because the two technologies are technically linked on the platform. For owners of devices that support 3D content, this means losing one of the premium features. Fortunately, the basic video formats remain available. Users can still watch content in 4K and use HDR10. Picture quality will therefore still be very high, though not as advanced as with Dolby Vision. Disney has already confirmed that the changes are a direct result of the legal proceedings and acknowledged that it understands customers' frustration. The company also says it is exploring possible solutions to restore the service's full functionality. It is worth noting that a similar problem has affected other tech companies as well. Amazon, however, struck a deal with InterDigital, allowing Prime Video to continue offering Dolby Vision to its users. For now, it is unclear whether Disney will take a similar step. One thing is certain: European Disney+ subscribers should prepare for a longer wait for the return of the lost features.
Disney+ has once again disabled Dolby Vision in some European Union countries after losing a patent dispute. In addition to the HDR format, 3D films have also disappeared from the platform. For now, users are left with 4K and HDR10 content, and the future of Dolby Vision in the European version of the service remains uncertain.
source: flatpanelshd
