A new DVD – one that will destroy itself in 48 hours, is being tested. This DVD, known as EZ-D to its makers, can be “played for 48 hours after being removed from its cover. It will then self-destruct—not in flames, its inventors hasten to add, but because contact with the air eventually renders its surface opaque, making it impossible for the laser in a disc player to read the data beneath. The idea is to revamp the video-rental market. At the moment, if you want to hire a movie for a couple of days you have to pay $5 or so for a videotape or DVD that may well be a bit scratched by previous use, and then go to all the hassle of returning it to the shop when you have finished with it. And you have to watch it soon after you have hired it, or risk paying a fine. None of this, except the 48-hour viewing period, applies to an EZ-D. It will stay in pristine condition in its case for a year, and once it has been watched—as many times as you like within the two-day window—it can be thrown away.”