MESSAGE
| DATE | 2009-03-22 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] DRM is still theft
|
piralFrog users can continue to play songs obtained from the now defunct
company for two more months before they become inaccessible, according
to a source close to the company.
The ad-supported music service shuttered its Web site late Thursday
evening and ceased operations, the source told CNET. Some customers of
the service asked on Friday how long their music, which is wrapped in
copy-protection software, will continue to play. A source familiar with
SpiralFrog's operations said the service's digital rights management
technology, designed to prevent unauthorized copying, will lock up the
music indefinitely after 60 days. The songs could live again should
SpiralFrog's assets be acquired and the new owner decide to relaunch the
service, the source said.
DRM critics will certainly cite this as further proof that the
technology is anti-consumer. The software remains hugely unpopular among
many music fans for limiting their ability to play songs on devices of
their choice. The critics argue that a person never really owns
DRM-locked music because they need server keys provided by service
operators to unlock the songs. But Christopher Levy, a vocal proponent
of the technology and considered one of the leading experts in the
field, questioned whether customers should be angered about losing music
they never paid a cent for.
Christopher Levy
(Credit: BuyDRM)
"(Protecting songs with DRM) was the only way that SpiralFrog could
offer the model," Levy said. "The record labels refused to go to market
without it. This was a very good business proposition for consumers.
They received free music as long as they agreed to be bombarded by
advertisements...I think it's hard to criticize the company...I think 60
days is very impressive."
Levy, who owns the company BuyDRM, says consumers deal with DRM every
day in ways they don't notice. The technology is improving and soon it
will be even less obtrusive. The technology helps protects the rights of
content creators, consumers, and technologists, he said.
"When DRM is right in the middle of all three, that is where happiness
is," Levy said. "Consumers are getting more comfortable with DRM and it
isn't going away. It may need to change, but it's not going away."
Antipiracy software is used by the film industry and by music
subscription services, such as Napster and RealNetwork's Rhapsody. But
in the past year, download sites like Apple's iTunes and Amazon have
rejected copy-protection software with the blessing of the major record
companies.
The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday is hosting a conference on the
use of DRM at the University of Washington School of Law, said Levy, who
will speak at the gathering.
According to an FTC press release, DRM "is expected to become
increasingly prevalent in the U.S. marketplace in the coming years" and
address "the need to improve disclosures to consumers about DRM
limitations."
--
http://www.mrbrklyn.com - Interesting Stuff
http://www.nylxs.com - Leadership Development in Free Software
So many immigrant groups have swept through our town that Brooklyn, like Atlantis, reaches mythological proportions in the mind of the world - RI Safir 1998
http://fairuse.nylxs.com DRM is THEFT - We are the STAKEHOLDERS - RI Safir 2002
"Yeah - I write Free Software...so SUE ME"
"The tremendous problem we face is that we are becoming sharecroppers to our own cultural heritage -- we need the ability to participate in our own society."
"> I'm an engineer. I choose the best tool for the job, politics be damned.<
You must be a stupid engineer then, because politcs and technology have been attached at the hip since the 1st dynasty in Ancient Egypt. I guess you missed that one."
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