I bought mine in the UK from a Sony center. I asked if it could be made region free and they done it while I waited for an extra £20.00. It was the Sony Center in Sutton Surrey in case anyone wondered. I don't beleave there is a hack for it yet. I would guess there is a special disc it boots from. Very bad player for features. Excellent quality picture and sound though. Shame it can not be upgraded for mp3 or svcd. The only way around this is to buy the later version or go to a super-market and get one for 50 quid that does the job. Last time I buy Sony for sure!