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[glynor]

Today is the Day Against DRM from the folks at Defective By Design.  Here's a story about it at good, ol' Ars:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061003-7893.html

And here's the page from the Defective crew:

http://defectivebydesign.org/en/blog/announce_day_against_drm

If you are like me and feel that DRM stands for Digital Restrictions Management rather than Digital Rights Management, now's as good a day as any to spread the word!

[jgreen]

"Day Against DRM?" 

Oh, that'll hit them where they live.  Are we supposed to spend the day listening to scratchy old vinyl records and and talk about how great it is to be rid of digital music?  No, wait--I get it.  There's good digital and there's bad digital, and instead of just not buying the bad digital, we should all go down to Crawford, TX and share groups hugs while listening to poetry readings accompanied by pan flute and zither. 

(jgreen acknowledges in advance that he's made a bit of a leap there.)

Still, never underestimate the power of a pan flute to effect social change.  MSFT stalled the EU for a decade, until at one of the meetings the threat was made to bring out a pan flute.  The EU had their consent decree the next day, signed by Bill G, who is well known to be no fan of the pan flute. 

[JimH]

jgreen acknowledges in advance that he's made a bit of a leap there.

Recognition is the first step....

Very funny.

[johnnyboy]

Luckily the common man/woman is starting to realise just what DRM means to them and is learning to hate and resent it too so hopefully in the next few years (probably 5 because society is so slow) we'll see a LARGE backlash against DRM and companies will realise that DRM options will result in them making higher profits as customers will be happier!

[glynor]

Still, never underestimate the power of a pan flute to effect social change.  MSFT stalled the EU for a decade, until at one of the meetings the threat was made to bring out a pan flute.  The EU had their consent decree the next day, signed by Bill G, who is well known to be no fan of the pan flute. 

Shudder.   

[jgreen]

I'm sorry, but somebody's going to have to explain to me how I'm worse off now than I was before.  The other evening I got a sudden hankering for the track "No Promises" by Icehouse.  Now, I could've called around to find a record store still open, and then ask the clerk who doesn't have time to talk to me whether they have this track she's never heard of.    If they have it, it's embedded in a collection or a special import and they want $15 or $20 for the CD, when all I want is the one song.  Okay, so let's say I drive one hour to the store and an hour back, fighting traffic and my fellowman the whole way.  Two hours later, I've got that track in lossless format for only $20 plus gas plus two hours of my time.

Instead, I went to Tower Digital and downloaded the track for 99 cents.  WMA/DRM 192 kbps.  From concept to fulfillment took 90 seconds, and if I ever care to I can still go buy the CD and Fair Use the heck out of it, and the only down side is 99 cents.  How are my rights being trampled? 

[glynor]

From concept to fulfillment took 90 seconds, and if I ever care to I can still go buy the CD and Fair Use the heck out of it, and the only down side is 99 cents.  How are my rights being trampled? 

And how long do you think this option (buying the unprotected CD at a store) will last?  5 years?  10?  Then what?  They'll effectively have perpetual copyright.  Sure, you "officially" might have public domain access to the song in 75 years (or whatever absurd term they've enacted by then), but since all the copies are DRMed and breaking DRM is illegal...

Plus, for those of us who do want to use it for things perfectly legal and defined as fair use (like maybe using a song in my home movie, or putting it on whatever portable device they think up next)...  What if, after Microsoft establishes "Plays For Sure" as the DRM of choice (good luck to you there, Bill) they decide they don't want anymore competition in the software market so they lock out JRiver from supporting WMA v13.... Sorry guys, gotta use WiMP.

And that, is trampling your rights.  And it's trampling the rights of all the indie labels who can't afford the DRM-enabling software, and the legal bills to defend it.  It's to further monetize remixing (pay a fee to the RIAA to be an "authorized" DJ at a club, and have to sign a "license agreement" that specifies what you can and can't do).  Do you really think these people haven't thought of this stuff?

And, most importantly, it doesn't stop piracy at all.  The entire point is to trample our rights, it's not a side-effect.

[dcwebman]

How are my rights being trampled? 

Here is an example a friend of mine just had. The biggest problem with DRM is the restrictions on how many places you can put it, burn it, etc. My friend had purchased some songs using MusicMatch years ago. They got bought out by Yahoo and it got converted into Music Jukebox. He tried to play those songs but it wanted a license and since he was on a new computer (old one was gone) he didn't have it. He didn't have a copy of the old MusicMatch so basically he had 6 albums that he had legally bought but now could not use.

[glynor]

Here is an example a friend of mine just had. The biggest problem with DRM is the restrictions on how many places you can put it, burn it, etc. My friend had purchased some songs using MusicMatch years ago. They got bought out by Yahoo and it got converted into Music Jukebox. He tried to play those songs but it wanted a license and since he was on a new computer (old one was gone) he didn't have it. He didn't have a copy of the old MusicMatch so basically he had 6 albums that he had legally bought but now could not use.

And they say...

Cha-ching!  Laughing all the way to the bank.

"Good thing we stopped them there pirates, Jo-Bob."

[wilfredjg]

I also would like to see DRM go bye bye. For what its worth I would like to pay 9.99 for a full cd lossless with the cover art. I would pay $1.29 for a single song in lossless. Why do I have to spend $9.99 for a full cd at 192 kbps or 99 cents for a song.  I can buy the cd at the big box for 11.99. Lets do away with the middle man full cd downloaded for $9.99 to 11.99. i would never have to step in a big box again.

[jgreen]

Wilfred--

Tower Records just went on the Marshal's auction block, the biggest of the big-box record stores in the USA, a casualty of the encroachment of online music.  My point is simply that the most powerful weapon we have against DRM (as currently configured) is the free market.  Nothing speaks louder than not buying music in a format we don't like.

My point to Glynor (put not quite so plainly, but by now he's used to it) is that moral outrage is laughable, given the cast of characters we're dealing with.  If you really don't like DRM'd music, don't buy it.  The fact is that plenty of people are willing to accept it, even in it's current form, which I can't believe will be the final iteration, it is so effing unworkable.

For my money, I agree with exactly what you said, and I think we're headed there.  The kind of turmoil you see now in the record industry is typical of an industry that has delayed adaptation to market changes, instead relying on serial price hikes in the face of declining volume.  Radical change is comping, I believe, but not because of radicals.

[wilfredjg]

Ok I see what you are saying I wish the record business would come around. In my area besides Tower Records in the last year HMV closed, Strawberries has only about 3 out of the eight stores still opened. Since Roadrunner on Time Warner I have been hoping for real download music. ( what I consider download music.)

[jgreen]

Well, it looks like Glynor and his band of Hari Krishnas are winning out against the suits.  Yahoo Music is starting to offer a limited number of tracks/albums DRM-free.  You pay them $.99 and you download an MP3 and the rest is your business.

Apparently the amyl-popping freaks--excuse me, rights-holders--over at the RIAA did some simple arithmetic and figured out that the only activity that DRM is limiting is purchases.  So now the wild theory is that they'll sell people what they want and charge what the market will bear.   

[KingSparta]

So now the wild theory is that they'll sell people what they want and charge what the market will bear.   

I think that is what people (potential customers) have been for about 10 years.

I have no proplems paying for music I download.

[glynor]

Apparently the amyl-popping freaks--excuse me, rights-holders--over at the RIAA did some simple arithmetic and figured out that the only activity that DRM is limiting is purchases.  So now the wild theory is that they'll sell people what they want and charge what the market will bear.   

I know!  Who'd a thunk it?

I too would have no problem paying for what I download, assuming my Fair Use rights are protected.  Even though I'm not a huge fan of Norah Jones (and I don't even know who Reliant K is, but I think they're christian rock), I'm considering buying a couple of MP3 tracks just to show my support.  Anyone hear what the bitrates are like?  If they're similar to LAME --preset fast standard I'll certainly consider buying!