Here’s a new one for the “Dumbest thing I’ve heard Today” pile:

New output content protection mechanisms planned for the next version of Microsoft® Windows® codenamed “Longhorn” protect against hardware attacks while playing premium content and complement the protection against software attacks provided by the Protected Environment in Windows Longhorn. These output protection mechanisms include:

• Protected Video Path – Output Protection Management (PVP-OPM) makes sure that the PC’s video outputs have the required protection or that they are turned off if such protection is not available.
• Protected Video Path – User-Accessible Bus (PVP-UAB) provides encryption of premium content as it passes over the PCI Express (PCIe) bus to the graphics adapter. This is required when the content owner’s policy regards the PCIe bus as a user-accessible bus.
• Protected User Mode Audio (PUMA) is the new User Mode Audio (UMA) engine in the Longhorn Protected Environment that provides a safer environment for audio playback, as well as checking that the enabled outputs are consistent with what the content allows.
• Protected Audio Path (PAP) is a future initiative under investigation for how to provide encryption of audio over user accessible buses.

Astounding.