This DVD will self-destruct 28 Apr 2008

A German company has introduced a DVD that can only be viewed for 48 hours. DVD-D Germany Ltd's "Einmal" (German for "once") discs incorporate a special chemical coating that gradually renders them unreadable. The process begins as soon as the discs are removed from their vacuum-sealed packaging and ends two days later with them producing a "No Disc" error when inserted into your DVD player or PC.

While this may seem like a product that's aimed solely at those working in the field of international espionage - a la "Mission Impossible" and its self-destructing messages - in reality, it casts a far wider net. The idea is that these discs will be used by home movie rental companies to increase their distribution opportunities and lower their costs. Confused? Let me explain. Since these discs have a short (and finite) lifespan, they do no need to be returned. When you rent one, you watch it and then throw it away (since it's unusable) - there's no need to return it to the store from which it came or to bung it in a pre-paid envelope and pop it in the post. Not only does this make things more convenient for customers, it saves rental companies money (by removing their returns process) and opens up the market to businesses like petrol stations, convenience stores and coffee shops to boot.