The Directors Guild of America may be circling the wagons to take legal action against a handful of companies that offer consumers edited versions of popular films with potentially offensive content stripped out. The potential suit's target is a handful of companies -- most of which are based in Utah -- that sell content-censoring software applications or altered videos and DVDs from which graphic language, sexual content and violence have been removed.
The companies in question include MovieMask software creators Trilogy Studios, as well as Family Shield Technologies, makers of the home technology system MovieShield. Their products let consumers censor movies on the fly through their PCs or televisions.
CleanFlicks and Video II, which operate differently, also have sparked the ire of directors and studios. These companies edit top-selling movies, then rent and resell "cleaned" versions ...