What I Think » drm

New Life For The CD Single

Paul — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 14:53:30 +0000

You may have heard that the recording companies have been complaining of late about a decline in music sales. In an attempt to turn the tide, Universal have turned to the USB flash drive. They’re planning to release songs from Keane and Pussycat Dolls on the format at the end of this month. The plan is that the new format will generate interest among the younger demographic.

A couple of things come to mind though, namely:

What format will the music be in?
Will DRM prevent Mac OS and Linux users from playing the content? If so, are the recording companies just going to alienate even more of their customers?
Will the content require a specific media player?
Will the end user be able to copy the content to more than one device?
What about people who want to listen to music on their hi-fi and not on their computer? Can the tracks be burned to CD?

While the ideal would be DRM-free MP3 files, I don’t see it happening, so it will be interesting to see how Universal proceed with this.

Sony Updates Copy Protection on Casino Royale

Paul — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 20:22:41 +0000

Consumers stuck with faulty copies of Sony DVD’s can contact Sony for a replacement. Sony have confirmed that an update to their proprietary DRM scheme caused the DVD to fail to play properly.

They have now resolved the issue and will replace any DVD’s affected.

EMI to Sell DRM-Free Music

Paul — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 20:33:39 +0000

EMI announced today that they are to make their entire online catalogue available without any copy protection or Digital Rights Management, (DRM). While the DRM-Free music will cost more, it will also be of a higher quality. This makes EMI the first label to back away from DRM. The first songs will be available through the Apple iTunes store in May.

The BBC also have a write up on what DRM is, and why it’s considered a bad idea by the online community, while the labels have embraced it whole-heartedly.