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Can Hollywood Learn From Intuit?
Ironica writes "Readers will recall the furor over Intuit's activation scheme for TurboTax 2002, which prompted a lawsuit and subsequently was removed from TT2002 and all future products. Here's an interesting editorial on CNNMoney suggesting that other DRM proponents could take a page out of Intuit's book ... if they have the sense."
Would the MPAA/RIAA/etc want you to pay royalties for remembering things?
In Intuit's case, they actually saw a loss on the books, and realized it was a Bad Thing. Hollywood hasn't seen any such loss, and so doesn't understand.
The problem can also be laid at the feet of the Copy protection software/hardware companies which see Hollywood an opportunity to sell their product into a new market.
They have had a devil of a time trying to sell other software companies for the last 10ish years on the idea, but now they have a new market open and this market isn't as technically sauvey as the Software Industry was back in the late 80's early 90's when we all decided the copy protection wars were not feasible.
Ted Tschopp
Fantasy remains a human right; we make in our measure and in our derivative mode... -- JRR Tolkien
Wasn't there a DVD recently released of a major picture (Harry Potter?) that has no protection and the publisher said it just wasn't worth the effort?
No, Hollywood is incapable of learning.
But seriously, I joke, I kid...
Hollywood will learn eventually, after they've been subjected to extreme pressure, loss of profits, and humiliating defeat of any copy protection mechanism they can devise. The same goes for any group of companies that have forgotten they exist because their customers allow them to, and not by some natural right.
I don't see a problem with it. It prevents piracy and also leads to many *schools* to purchase more then 1 copy from me, as I can easily proove from my logs. I don't write to people's boot sectors or anything though - just some simple DSA PKI.
Morphing Software
They'll learn that the copy protection mechanisms must be phased into use, and shouldn't provide enough drastic changes to enrage normally enthralled masses...
Spin it again Sam.
I'm sure the MPAA and RIAA will learn from this, NOT! Intuit has competition from Quicken, neither the MPAA or RIAA have competition in the sense of a true replacement product. Scooby Doo is not an acceptable replacement for The Matrix, just like Eminem is not an acceptable replacement for Christina Aguilera. The MPAA and RIAA will stop the fight when their coffers are bare and they're leveraged to the hilt. Is this "the smart thing" to do? No, but then again these guys are too stubborn to see a good thing when it keeps hitting them upside the head repeatedly. The idocy of their fight against un-DRM'd MP3s simply blows me away. They could have 98% of all the file sharers in their back pocket happily charging credit cards if they'd just stop being so friggen obtuse.
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws-Plato
Except they've proven time and again how little regard they have for their customers. Personally I don't give a fsck anymore, they've already lost me. I don't do buisness with anybody that treats me like a criminal.
It is certainly quite possible that Hollywood will go through the same motions that Intuit did, and will soon find themselves in the same situation.
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Is that Software has to be updated every few years. Software makers don't expect to pay coders a flat fee to produce a product and sit on the profits for the next 70+ years.
Movie makers do. They pay artists a flat fee to make a movie, grab all copyrights & sell the movie for the next 70+ years.
So - Software makers dont *need* DRM as much as movie makers.
We're going to have to wait for (or force) a change in the (frankly corrupt) Hollywood business model.
So. No. Hollywood won't learn.
TurboTax is an unique piece of software in the sense that it has a very specific goal. It is used only once, and then it needs to be replaced by a newer version. Combine this with the fact that it would appeal even to users who would never install anything else on their computers, and you get a large number of disenchanted customers. You will never get the same protest base with programs like Windows, which come largely preinstalled, or different office suites, which the user installs and forgets, until he replaces the computer.
As for entertainment products, there is a possibility of such a backlash only when the products don't work on common players. The people who want to play CDs on their computers may be vocal, but they are too small of a minority to hurt the companies' revenues signifficantly, in the case of a boycott.
"A microprocessor... is a terrible thing to waste." --
GeneralEmergency
So...
DRM = soufflé
soufflé = to blow (in French)
Therefore, DRM Blows!
And thats a wrap!
If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
Software of all kinds is a tool. In general the more ways you can use a given tool the more valuable it is. Digital Restrictions tend to reduce the value of the things they are applied to. If you reduce the value of an item without reducing its price you shouldnt be surprised if you sell less.
I've been using TurboTax for eight years now. This "product activation" nonsense was a rude surprise for me this year. I certainly did my part in bitching, pissing, and moaning as loud as I could.
And, I might take this opportunity to mention that product activation wasn't the only thing that made doing last year's taxes with TurboTax a completely disgusting, and revolting experience. Almost every other screen was filled with Intuit's sales pitches for other unrelated garbage that I didn't need, or want. First, Turbotax haggled me to upgrade to a premium version of TurboTax. All they want is my credit card number to "unlock" the extra crap; there's nothing to download. Of course, after reviewing the list of additional "features" in the premium version it was pretty clear that no more than, perhaps, 1% of people could possibly use it.
Then, TurboTax haggled me to use Intuit's electronic filing service, against for a premium cost. Then, another sales pitch to upgrade to premium TurboTax features, Finally, TurboTax wanted me to pay for storing my tax return in an "electronic vault", for safekeeping (whatever the fuck it means).
This year, doing my taxes was a totally nauseating experience. Literally, my wallet had a bullseye painted right on it, in bright red colors, and Intuit tried everything they could to grab as much of it as they can. I JUST WANT TO DO MY TAXES AND LEAVE MY WALLET ALONE.
Intuit is hoping that this controversy is over. But I hope that it's not over. Even though Intuit is now furiously backpedaling and groveling that's not enough for me. I will follow through on my promise, and no matter how many times Intuit will now swear that their spyware/DRM is history, I will still use a competing product next year. And if I like it, I'll continue to use it. If not, I'll perhaps go back to Turbotax the following year.
I firmly believe that Intuit should not be allowed to get a get-out-of-jail-free card simply by issuing a bunch of warm-sounding press releases, full of vague and nebulous promises. They must still have to deal with the consequences of their decisions, and I'm hoping that others feel the same way too, and will still use some other competing tax preparation package next year.
The FAQ:
Q: Can Hollywood Learn From Intuit?
A: No.
From the article:
"Customer reviews on Amazon.com (AMZN) tell the tale. For the 2001 version of TurboTax (which had no activation feature), the average customer-satisfaction rating was four and a half stars. For the activation-enhanced 2002 edition, the average rating dropped to one and a half stars, and the reviews bore titles such as "scumbags," "disaster," and, perhaps presciently, "the demise of TurboTax.""
I think the lesson the DRM-and-associated industries will take from this is the Boiling Frog story.
For those not familiar with it (there might be a few), the theory goes that if you put a frog into a pot of boiling water it will immediately jump out. If you place that frog in a pan of warm water and slowly raise the heat to boiling, the thing won't budge until it's dead (and then it still won't budge. =)
In other words, the lesson learned is "erode their rights slowly, don't yank the carpet out from under them all at once. Start with the minor potatoes like so-called "fair use." They're entitled to protection from litigation if they're copying something for their own use but that doesn't mean we have to make the item copyable so we can leverage the DMCA for all it's worth. The politicans are cheap. Consider them as insurance or rent money -- just another cost of doing business. The consumer (and oh how I love that word) won't even know they have rights nevermind miss them in 20 years. Just do it slowly."
Oh yeah. Holywood can learn. The question is "can we?"
My
Limekiller
Unfortunately, they have more "cents" than "sense", so I doubt things will change any time soon.
$0.02 (CDN)
One might argue that this is because Intuit has competition, while Hollywood is in fact several dominant companies working together in a de facto monopoly.
Providing an alternative to the MPAA that will be as attractive to an average consumer is not really feasiable, but for the RIAA it can be done.
Imagine a P2P sharing network that contains only legal content (how? probably something to do with only allowing non-anonymous posting, and a DMCA-protected login (flame away), among other things). Consumers have a legal, non-threatening way to get so much new music RIAA can feel a two-digit-percentage sales drop (on top of the current situation). You'll effectively be cutting off the RIAA's "ear supply", if you will.
In less than a year, they'll sign up for accounts to post some of their own tainted music.
From an article in Time Magazine (I think) where he said "If we have to file 1,000 lawsuits a day, we'll do it!"
That was a couple a years ago and the subborn old man has learned nothing.
This time about why inuit would do the whole product activation scheme in the first place: www.gripe2ed.com
I mean software companies would rather sell you a product every year than once for life. (Not including M$ wich wants to sell you 1 product for life.....every year.) Why don't the music and movie companies see this?
I am not a real music person but there are several songs I would enjoy owning, but only if i can get them for a reasonable price. I mean I would be happy to pay a couple bucks to download a song, so long as i can then do whatever i want with it.
My VCR's whole function is to record, TV's, music, etc. So why suddenly do they expect us to pay for everything, every time we want to use it, and to pay more. This whole fight has been had before and its obvious who one, since we all own VCR's (well the majority do), and tape decks. Most of us even have photocopiers at work etc. In all those cases, tape, cassete, book/magazine, if it is something we want and we can purchase it for a reasonable price then we do so. We don't photocopy a 5$ paper back because that would be stupid. You go buy the book.
When record and movie companies remember that then they can drop this whole scam. Until then pirates/hackers/everybody will do what gives us the best return for our investment.
So the real question becomes, not will they learn, but when will they learn, and more importantly how do we help them learn?
These two words to not go together.
This is a small article in a relatively unknown magazine, and even there, Intuit's claim that the consumer backlash was "completely unexpected" tells the real tale:
They still don't get it.
This isn't about technology, rights or anything. This is about simple plain good business sense. This is about bad management. It is a fallacy for a company to think that their product is so delightful that people will put up with being treated like a criminal for the right to use it. Intuit only has one major competitor (H&R Block's Taxcut). The RIAA has thousands of small labels that are chomping at the bit in anticipation of the market the big labels are about to surrender.
The nice thing about a market economy is that the RIAA's folly is our opportunity. It's actually in the small labels' best interests for the RIAA and Microsoft to continue down the DRM path.
So let's keep this news quiet, okay?
Can Hollywood change? I doubt it, so the onus is on the public -- the music buying and movie buying public -- and the artists who particpate in the new technology like Phish and Pearl Jam. If the fans support musicians who have embraced technology, then Hollywood will change. Now, don't get me wrong, they will change only when they see they can get a buck out of your pocket.
Some people have a way with words, others not have way.
"Can Hollywood learn?"
That's not really true. Sure, TurboTax I'd have to update every year because the tax laws change, but if I'm making, say, a game, I need to rely on making nearly all my sales in the next few quarters, just like with a music CD or new movie. There's no "update" in a year unless I've made a whole new game. Software makers have much more of a vested interest in copy protection than the movie industry, I reckon; a pirated VCD doesn't compare to a good cinema.
Everyone knows that damage is done to the soul by bad motion pictures. -Pope Pius XI
Is the 48 hr CD of TurboTax on it's way?
They can't even grasp basic economics. They flood the market with trash like Dumb and Dumberer and Final Desination 2 and wonder why, according to Jack Valenti (can he be trusted at all?), they gross an average of only $52M a year. The movie studios basically know how to make a movie that will bring in heaping piles of cash. Look at the Matrix and LOTR. The problem is that they are so greedy that they can't accept that at the end of the day, if they produce a few good movies a year and call it even, they will more likely than not come out ahead more easily than if they put out many times that.
The music industry has an excuse, music fans are often fickle and can throw out a band after one CD because their style "isn't cool anymore." Most music is disposable because people don't want anything artistic or refreshingly original. I listen to old stuff by The Cult occassionally as well as more recent stuff like Stabbing Westward. You don't see that kind of rock anymore. It's the same tuned-down, crunch-your-head-off distortion filled, 3 power chord bullshit. I mean WTF is up with a band like the All American Rejects? I just started playing bass a week ago after having been playing guitar on a semi-active basis for 5 months and can play at least one of their bass lines they're that fucking simple! Swing, Swing has only 4 notes in the entire bass line and you just hit them as 8th notes in sets of 8. Again, pathetic... even I a total newbie write cooler bass lines than that. I want my recording contract now that I know that the bar has been thrown out, not lowered.
The IP cartels are greedy and they're not bound to full market forces. Whoever heard of a Korn CD competing with a TRUSTCompany CD? They don't, except for this week's $15 allowance. Buy one this week, buy the other next week. They won't learn because the government is going to step in like a good fascist state and save them from the pirhannas of capitalism that are now about to descend upon them. America will slip backward, other countries will take our economic lead, but a bunch of neocons will be able to sleep peacefully at night knowing that the market is safe for Britney Spears and Limp Bizkit. Too bad that a bunch of our IT sector will be in ruins and our economy's growth will be fizzling out. "Property rights" will be have been protected, except for your right to modify your DVD-R/RW or DVD player so it can play non-CSS DVD-Rs. Hey, property rights in the neocon world belong only to those who produce, not those who consume.
I'm a neo-liberal/libertarian and yes, I openly and freely admit that I vehemently hate neo-conservatism and wish enlightenment for them first, and if that doesn't work a pox on them.
Click here or a puppy gets stomped!
TurboTax is not too special, there are several other similar applications, as well as businesses, that will do your taxes. You don't like dealing with the DRM in TurboTax, you use some other service.
Only Warner Brothers will make the Matrix. If you don't like what Warner Brothers is doing with the Matrix and DRM, you're only choice is to get a copy of questionable legality (ripped, filmed in theater, etc.).
People on slashdot can speak a non freedom launguage?
;-) )
(It's a joke, please don't try to shock and awe mod me
They really thought that creating softwer that when installed actually wrote something on my MBR was not going to upset me?
How dumn are they?
Up till this year I used turbotax for the past several returns, but this year I use TaxAct. And although their interface was not as nice as turbotax, it saved me money and didn't tamper with my machine!
This is just sig!
Think Intuit is giving up on drm?
Maybe timothy and the slashdot crowd should check their facts first, before crediting Intuit with anything.
Looks like Intuit's spin is working wonders.
Intuit's problem was that their DRM was too restrictive. They need a way to allow the sw to be installed on 3 computers for instance, but no more. Then people couldn't complain about legitimate uses of the sw being hampered. However, Intuit is still losing money on people passing the sw around the office, etc., so to maximise profit they need some less noticeable DRM.
Vote for Pedro
The RIAA had no copy protection on CDs, and suddenly profits started decreasing (coincidently around the time Napster came out). Apparently, no copy protection isn't the answer either to maximize profits.
Vote for Pedro
..Users of the Turbotax software can be considered outside the realm of normal consumers..There's a big difference between the mindsets of a person who goes out to buy a tax package to use for Uncle Sam's extortion and your garden variety 1337 kiddie trading DVD rips on IRC rather than taking a trip to the Suncoast to buy it..Apples and Oranges man, apples and oranges.. ..See, I look at it like this: Most Turbotax users are going to be pretty saavy at doing their taxes no? They're probably middle income with some post secondary education, and they're spending hard earned money on a tool thats going to help them go through an experience which, given the choice between tax time and a root canal with a rusty pair of pliers..the pliers win..The majority of people sucking up entertainment media are NOT of that mindset..(One only has to look to reality TV to see this..)..
Dare I say it, but I believe MOST people wouldn't really make a protest at this..Yeah yeah, the ocean of geeks freqenting this site would disagree, but keep in mind that this is NOT indicative of the American Mindset..Most suck up whats on the TV set as truth and don't question..If the company tells them to go out and buy a DRM approved player, they're going to do it because they can't even CONCEIVE of bucking the trend for a brighter day, much less form any kind of resistence to the status quo...
The two products (Tax Software Vs. Your Favorite Movies) are fundamentally different in design and need as well..Entertainment, due in no small part to the structure that media has set up for itself is a fleeting thing..People want spectacular *POP* to everything that they buy, but having that puts one in the mindset that they shouldn't have to pay a great deal for it, or give any creedence to its artistic merit (which, nowadays in movies and music, there is little..)..Chances are if told that they have to obey the copy protection, given the price is right, they'll do it..Whereas with tax software, because of the above mentioned psychology, the anxiety level when dealing with the product itself is MUCH higher..(Now what 13 year old girl is REALLY gonna become the next Che Guevera of the digital world because she can't rip her favorite N'sync CD to a non-DRM MP3 player? Chances are, she's just gonna get mommy or daddy to buy the pass to use it on said MP3 player in addition to the home stereo..)..
Apples and Oranges...
FWIW this story wasn't buried. When I submitted this to Slashdot on Friday, it was on the MSNBC site here.
It was also in the Wall Street Journal on Friday here. [paid subscription]. It appeared in the print version too.
This could easily backfire and put more power into the hands of MSFT. Since they're currently the only (IFAIK) OS distributor that is "enabling the consumer by adding DRM to the core OS", some software companies may turn to them in an effort to protect their stranglehold on consumers. I'm not necessarily saying that TurboTax was doing this, but the RIAA certainly is; and as such, they're very likely to help push MSFT's propaganda and ultimately help proliferate DRM.
Here's the bottom line, if we (media users) don't act responsibly and avoid the urge to pirate videos, music, and software (at least buy it or otherwise support the creator somehow), these companies will force DRM onto us.
As consumers we do have significant "wallet" power, however, if we don't act responsibly, the powers that be will make sure that we do [act responsibly].
Call me conservative, but the creators of digital content (videos, audio, etc) should be able to make a living; however, they also shouldn't be able to destroy consumers by partnering with an unavoidable monopoly either.
If we don't take responsibility for our actions (and our peers' actions) now, we can't complain about losing our [said] rights in the future.
Don't think that a small group of dedicated individuals can't change the world. It's the only thing that ever has.
I think the question still is will they learn.
,of course, but more people would feel that its worth it to go buy music or movies. If you want one CD, $20 might not seem like alot. But then you want another CD. Another $20. There's another CD you want. $20 again! $60 total! It adds up quickly. And you probably only wanted a few songs from each CD.
Its almost like they're blind. They just don't see when someone straight tells it to them. They keep saying stuff like there's no problem with sales, its just all those pirates. But the pirates are pretty much everyone, and there is a problem with sales. If they lowered prices their profit on each item would fall
Movie companies think they can justify the price for a DVD with all the extra features. Does anyone really want to see how the actors messed up durring the shooting or hear what the director thinks of everything or see the scenes that weren't put in the actual movie? I sure don't! If I really want a song or a movie, I'll go find it on the internet. And even before the internet, ever since VCRs and tape recorders were invented, people like my dad has been recording music and movies off the TV and radio. If he hears a song he likes he'll much rather wait untill its played again on the radio and record it. He has hundreds of tapes of music that he got for just the price of blank tapes and his tape deck.
Will they learn? Maybe, if they ever gain enough intelligence to see their need for laser sugery. Will that happen? God only knows.
If Windows is running and there's no one there to use it, does it still crash?
cmkrcs1 was here.
Think Intuit is giving up on drm?
Now that was a nice link! As a poster observed above, the lesson Intuit learned was don't do it all at once. I.E., DRM nasties on the MBR right now. It kinda reminds when a lot of the banks moved their credit card operations to South Dakota. Big consumer backlash. So they just sat tight for a few years and did it anyway. Intuit will do the same; just sit tight for a couple of years and ease in some new form of copy protection.
Intuit gets to sell you the same software each year with minimal changes. Sure they create bloatware versions with videos and extra garbage that nobody uses, but the core product is the same thing they were selling five years ago. They update the tax tables, make the changes for any changes in the law, and sell you the product all over again.
Intuit realized that many customers were sharing their product with others and that probably looked like lost profits.
But if someone lets a few others copy TurboTax, odds are one or two of those people will buy their own copy next year rather than hassle with chasing down the shared CD to install the program. Instead Intuit alienated the users that purchased the product as well as those who didn't. When they asked their buddy to borrow the copy of TurboTax, they were told "Sorry, the CD has some lame copy protection stuff". Now the purchaser and his/her buddies say "Intuit s**cks".
"We make our world significant by the courage of our questions and by the depth of our answers." Carl Sagan
Year after year you pump out virtually identical copies of the same thing over and over.
Sounds like Hollywood already knows all they need to.
You don't get it. The RIAA started seeing lower revenue without any copy protection on CDs. So consumers are protesting not having DRM by your arguement.
Vote for Pedro
[Note: in the following text, former FreeBSD developer Mike Smith gives his reasons for abandoning FreeBSD]
When I stood for election to the FreeBSD core team nearly two years ago, many of you will recall that it was after a long series of debates during which I maintained that too much organisation, too many rules and too much formality would be a bad thing for the project.
Today, as I read the latest discussions on the future of the FreeBSD project, I see the same problem; a few new faces and many of the old going over the same tired arguments and suggesting variations on the same worthless schemes. Frankly I'm sick of it.
FreeBSD used to be fun. It used to be about doing things the right way. It used to be something that you could sink your teeth into when the mundane chores of programming for a living got you down. It was something cool and exciting; a way to spend your spare time on an endeavour you loved that was at the same time wholesome and worthwhile.
It's not anymore. It's about bylaws and committees and reports and milestones, telling others what to do and doing what you're told. It's about who can rant the longest or shout the loudest or mislead the most people into a bloc in order to legitimise doing what they think is best. Individuals notwithstanding, the project as a whole has lost track of where it's going, and has instead become obsessed with process and mechanics.
So I'm leaving core. I don't want to feel like I should be "doing something" about a project that has lost interest in having something done for it. I don't have the energy to fight what has clearly become a losing battle; I have a life to live and a job to keep, and I won't achieve any of the goals I personally consider worthwhile if I remain obligated to care for the project.
Discussion
I'm sure that I've offended some people already; I'm sure that by the time I'm done here, I'll have offended more. If you feel a need to play to the crowd in your replies rather than make a sincere effort to address the problems I'm discussing here, please do us the courtesy of playing your politics openly.
From a technical perspective, the project faces a set of challenges that significantly outstrips our ability to deliver. Some of the resources that we need to address these challenges are tied up in the fruitless metadiscussions that have raged since we made the mistake of electing officers. Others have left in disgust, or been driven out by the culture of abuse and distraction that has grown up since then. More may well remain available to recruitment, but while the project is busy infighting our chances for successful outreach are sorely diminished.
There's no simple solution to this. For the project to move forward, one or the other of the warring philosophies must win out; either the project returns to its laid-back roots and gets on with the work, or it transforms into a super-organised engineering project and executes a brilliant plan to deliver what, ultimately, we all know we want.
Whatever path is chosen, whatever balance is struck, the choosing and the striking are the important parts. The current indecision and endless conflict are incompatible with any sort of progress.
Trying to dissect the above is far beyond the scope of any parting shot, no matter how distended. All I can really ask of you all is to let go of the minutiae for a moment and take a look at the big picture. What is the ultimate goal here? How can we get there with as little overhead as possible? How would you like to be treated by your fellow travellers?
Shouts
To the Slashdot "BSD is dying" crowd - big deal. Death is part of the cycle; take a look at your soft, pallid bodies and consider that right this very moment, parts of you are dying. See? It's not so bad.
To the bulk of the FreeBSD committerbase and the developer community at large - keep your eyes on the real goals. It's w
Can Hollywood Learn From ______________.
No.
Our investment management firm was, for the time, highly IT intensive. All of our investment selections were based on statistical/computer models; the only way anyone could order a trade was through a (mainframe) computer interface. We started buying PCs early on, together with an early version of Lotus 1-2-3.
Then, Lotus introduced copy protection. Initially, we didn't have a big problem with that, in principle; but then we started to encounter the practical realities of unusable machines, software that we could not reload, and so on.
I can remember a meeting with some senior people from Lotus in my office. I told them a couple of things:
--We liked 1-2-3: it was really useful.
--We would never, from that time forward, buy any software with copy protection, under any circumstances.
As I told them then, and as I want to make clear now, we were NOT trying to cheat or get more licences than we were paying for. We were, however, unwilling to do business with another firm that treated us under the assumption that we were criminals.
This story had a happy ending. we were able to negogiate a deal for a "non-copy-protected" version of Louts's software. Not long after, the offer was made generally available.
I'm glad to hear that Intuit has figured things out. Perhaps some day others will ;-).
Rich
Intuit has plenty of competition, there are many equivalent DRM free SW packages that can produce the same results.
Hollywood has no serious competition, even less than MS. Nobody can match their global marketing prowess and astronomical budgets. Certainly none can match their political clout either, the lobbying power of the RIAA is but a shadow of the MPAA.
My rights don't need management.
when you say neo-liberal, are you indicating that you like stuff like NAFTA and corporatization? (now THERE's loaded question!...) but I'm with you about no love for the neocons. They're dragging us all to hell -- unless we stand up in mass and tell them THE FUCK NO!
-- haaz.
No one in Hollywood pays taxes. Half the film industry runs "under the table", and the other half is always showing losses. And now with file sharing, they'll never have profits!
Hollywood didn't learn from VCR's, didn't learn from videodisks, didn't learn from DVD's and now can't learn from digital media. To put it simply, Hollywood's arrogance won't LET them learn!
VALENTINE KAMARA
LOT 205 VON MARCHE,
PLATEAU - ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST
TELEPHONE: +225 07774012
Attn: MD/CEO.
I am Mr. Valentine Kamara (21yrs old), a Sierra Leonian by birth and the only surviving son of the former Director of finance, Federal Ministry of Finance and Minning of Sierra Leone late Chief VINCENT KAMARA. I must confess my agitation is real and my words are my bond in this proposal.
When my late Father was alive, he diverted the sum of US$17MILLION meant for purchase of ammunition during the peak of the disastrous civil war as he was against the civil war that claimed over One million innocent lives of my people, he deposited the money in a Bank in Abidjan, capital of Ivory Coast where I am presently residing as a Political Refugee with my younger sister Mary Kamara (17 years old) but we want to leave the IVORY COAST due to the instability here because of the recent on going armed rebel conflict in Ivory Coast that started on the 19th of September, 2002.
Now the war in my native Country-Sierra Leone is over with the help of ECOMOG soldiers, the present Government of Sierra-Leone has revoked the International Passport(s) of all Past Officials who served under the former government and they have gone further to ask various Countries to expel such Person(s)/Officials and at the same time freeze their Bank Accounts and confiscate their assets,it is on this note that I am contacting you to assist me and my sister to transfer this money overseas into your bank account before they are discovered and frozen, all I needed from you is to furnish me with your bank particulars such as:
1) BANK NAME
2) BANK ADDRESS, TELEPHONE / FAX NUMBERS ETC.
3) ACCOUNT NAME / ACCOUNT NUMBER
4) OTHER RELEVANT BANKING INFORMATION
Upon your consent to assist me and my sister, I am compensating you with 20% of the total money amount after the transfer of the money must have taken place into your given bank account and in case of any other necessary expenses you might incure I would give you an additional 5% of the total amount, presently all my hopes are on you as I really wants to invest this money in your Country where there are both Political and Economical stability.
Honestly, I want you to believe that this transaction is real and not a joke. My late father Chief VINCENT KAMARA gave me the copy of the Certificate of deposit / Agreement slip issued to him by the bank on the date of deposit which you can confirm from the bank though I do not wish to expose myself and my sister to anybody I see, I believe that you would be able to keep this transaction secret for me because this money is the hope of our lives, it is VERY IMPORTANT.
Please call me immediately after you must have gone through my message, feel free and make it urgent.
I would further appreciate it if you would kindly negotiate for me in some profitable blue chip investment opportunities in your country that are risky free in which I can invest this money when it is transfered to your bank account, personally I am interested in Estate management and Hotel businesses, please advise me.
Call me back immediately you receive this message for more explanation. And promise me and my younger sister to be a father to us considering our situation and that you will not betray us.
Thanks and God bless you.
Yours sincerely.
Best Regards
Valentine Kamara
N.B. The major reason why I need your assistance is that my late Father used me as the beneficiary / next of kin on the day of deposited and also put a clause that the money should not be released to me until I attain the age of 30years old or on the alternative if I am able to produce a reliable foreign partner that is to say I need a foreign assistance of a foreigner with Legitimate Bank account abroad who will stand as co-beneficiary and partner abroad.
So Apple sold 2 million songs in about 2 weeks at 99 cents each, right?
Why would these people buy these songs instead of just downloading them for free on Kazaa/Gnutella/etc?
Getting a song for free:
- cost: $0
- ease of use: pretty easy
- time to get: depends
- availability: depends
- quality: depends
- platform: mp3s will play on any system
- usage restrictions: none
- legality: not legal.
Getting a song from apple:
- cost: 99c / song, $9.99 / album
- ease of use: really easy
- time to get: really fast
- availability: about 20% of commercial music
- quality: guaranteed good.
- platform: mac only
- usage restrictions: medium-restrictive D.R.M.
- legality: legal.
And those are basically all the issues.
So apparently, ease of use + time to get + quality + legal vs cost + platform + restrictions results in $1 million a week for apple. Not too shabby!
Now what if they dropped the last two strikes against them (besides cost).. platform and usability restrictions? As they upped their cd library they'd soon find the ONLY advantage Kazaa would have would be price, whereas apple would now win (or at least tie) in every other category! How much money would they maybe gross then?
They make $1M a week now right? Let's say opening up the service to non-mac users (95%+ of the users) only triples their revenues. Let's say dropping all restrictions on use again doubles the usage. Finally, let's say them quintupling their collection to include everything ever recorded doubles their revenues again. It looks like they stand to make about $625 Million a year from this service.. if they'd just loosen up on the DRM (and complete their selection)!
Oh, I actually think they could...but only after extenstive amounts of serious brain grafts. But it ain't gonna happen.
Yes, Hollywood could learn a lot if they cared to. The skills needed to survive in the harsh Artic conditions, making tough and warm clothing from animal skins, fishing, traditional medicine... perhaps it would be a good idea for some overpaid Hollywood executives to adopt a more humble attitude and see what they have to learn from the Inuit.
-- Ed Avis ed@membled.com
Intuit is a small company which can not afford the loses. Its primarily a home office type product. Business probably doesn't use it. Whereas as we all know M$ is huge and business uses it. It will be used by banks etc first and they will love it. Then for consumers to use online banking etc we will have to use it. Its inevitable.
Sorry I'm feeling very gloomy about the world situation today.
-- Karma Karma Karma Karma, Karma Chameleon - Boy George
I realy hate unwanted hitchhikers that install an installer without asking. If I have to uninstall the "Install AOL" program again, I'm going to have some serious words with my ex-software vendor.
The truth shall set you free!
They also had 'competition' internally as well, at least from a DRM standpoint: the online Turbotax (the same programs) which I used again this year, required no downloading or installing of any DRM, only the boxed versions had that crappola.
You still get to keep the e version of your tax files for reference, and Intuit keeps them on record as well (they do for all versions), handy if you suffer a data loss, mildly troubling if you worry about grand conspiracies, Big Brother or corporate stupidity.
After looking at all the other tax preparation software, online and otherwise, Intuit was still the best for me, and I was satisfied for one more year to use them again.
I'm glad they've seem some light on their boxed verisons, but there were other options for folks if they bothered to check.
Could be. People don't want to take the risk.
Since BMG announced they'll "protect" CDs I unsubscribed from their club and didn't buy one single CD. Maybe others did the same.
I do not use P2P or own any pirated music.
Radio seems to be enough for the moment.
"Protect" that.
Check out the basslines from U2's songs. I'm guessing you can already play them too.
But does that mean U2 is a lousy, manufactured band? A bunch of teeny-boppers with nothing but an eye for money?
I may not be the biggest U2 fan, but I can recognize this isn't true. They've done quite well as a political statement band with a fair amount of musical experimentation.
And they've done it all with a below-average bass player and thus simplistic basslines.
You are way off base measuring the value of a song by the complexity of it.
As I remember hearing in middle school "with taxes, the math is easy; it's the English that's hard."
And you know, instead of downloading the forms from the IRS and then spending your own printer ink and time on forms you know you'll need (not to mention having to read instructions on a glaring screen), you could just walk (or, if you live in a poorly designed neighborhood, drive) down to your local post office or public library and grab the forms and instruction booklets you'll need. I only ever downloaded the occasional odd form I couldn't find at the local library - for the common stuff, it's faster and cheaper to let the government foot the bill for printing and delivering them. (and you usually get better print quality, too)
Here's a radical idea - if you check the appropriate box (or don't check it - I can't remember how the question is worded) the government will even have a federal employee hand-deliver printed forms and instruction booklets to your mailbox for use next year, for free. (Assuming you're still in the same place and all)
What a country!
I've gotten so disgusted with commercial music and the fact that I can't stand any of it, that I've done exactly that.
I mostly buy world (including Hindu) music because (to me) it's different and fresh. Go looking for some world music, it's way less formulaic, and people who aren't normally supported by the big music companies get money.
OK, so the frog boiling thing is an urban legend. But according to my brother, who sells dozens of different types of reptiles and knows a great deal about them, there is a frog that is SO LAZY that they will not move even though they are being gradually eaten by smaller insects.
t tp://www.pacmanfrog.com/
This frog is known as the Pac-Man Frog (I Am Not Making This Up). I saw some two days ago at a reptile show, and they deserve the name; they're basically a big blob with a mouth. Their daily routine consists of sitting still and eating whatever comes too close (including mice, or your hand; they do have fangs and a quite painful bite).
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Zoo/6379/
h
WMBC freeform/independent online radio.
Working at a college radio station, we get a few dozen CDs every week. About half of these are bland like what is on commercial radio, but at least a few every week are really, really good. Also, if a CD only has two or three good tracks on it, that's the exception, not the rule.
Of course, it may be harder for you to find this type of stuff, since you don't have labels and distributors sending it to you every week. But it's not that hard. Check out your local college station. If you don't have one, or they don't play the type of music you like, check out ours! [Note: currently automated broadcast from our catalog because this is finals time, but that will give you some idea of the music.] Most towns have music venues and CD stores that focus on independant/local artists; check those out too. In Baltimore, it's SoundGarden (not related to the band). Visit www.cmj.com for "what's new" this week in college radio (but note that every station will have its own version, leaving out some of those bands and inserting others. We don't make our DJs follow playlists.)
Commercial radio is going to be bland because the people behind it are interested in making money rather than art. But you don't have to be limited by their ambitions.
WMBC freeform/independent online radio.
...and they're in their 50s. There's a lot of old music that's way overpriced or hard to get on CD, but readily available on MP3.
Seriously, it's not just kids doing it.
As if America could be behind in anything? America is teh 5up3r10r!
Seriously, though, with everything I read about how far behind we are on basic stuff (healthcare, unemployment services, alternative energy), seeing Bowling for Columbine, and then seeing "W" on the news every night, it makes me wanna move to Canada more and more every day.
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I'd rather be flamed than ignored.
seeing Bowling for Columbine
Why? It's a great example of Hollywood Entertainment. It's just another example of the genre of the mockumentary (but not as good as This is Spinal Tap IMHO)
"Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys" P. J. O'Rourke
I appreciate your stance against Moore, though I see his innacuracies to be acceptable still. I see Moore as a politician, and therefore take him with a grain of salt. He makes some very valid suppositions in the film, and then uses faulty data to back it up. I've seen other politicians do a lot worse. But I was specifically referring to Moore's positive portrayal of Canada in Columbine. From what he shows (socialized healthcare, a robust welfare system), their national stance on war, my few visits, and a specific good job offer, Canada is looking pretty sweet.
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I'd rather be flamed than ignored.
With all of the chatter about DRM and file swapping, it's easy to miss the actual point of the article: Intuit actually *listened* to customers, quickly elminating the copy-protection that customers hated so much.
The insinuation about RIAA, MPAA, and Microsoft is that they take their customers for granted. But because they are monopolies, their anti-consumer behavior drives consumers underground because there is no substantial legitimate competition to turn to.
The Apple online store is a shiny happy example of a legitimate alternative; and the biggest point about it is that artists get paid, and customers have relatively good control over how they use the product that they pay for. They don't have to put up with heavy-handed DRM. The consumer wins.