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BusinessWeek on Opening Apple's iTunes DRM
hype7 writes "BusinessWeek is running a very interesting story on Apple's foray into music, with a different bent to everyone else's. BW suggests that, instead of opening the iPod up to the world, Apple should instead license its DRM - 'Fairplay' - to anyone who wants to start up a music store. The upside is obvious: it would mean that Apple's music format, AAC, would become ubiquitous; Apple could quite feasibly make money on licensing fees (say 1 cent per song sold); and, it would just happen to stick it to Microsoft and the Windows Media Format. As the iTunes Music Store isn't running at a profit (or forecast to make a big one), having the Music Store clones eat into Apple's existing market share wouldn't be a problem; all these stores would be doing is building a bigger potential market for the iPod."
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Are there any plans for iPod to support ogg vorbis? I've been thinkin about getting a portable music device, and I've heard lots of good things about the iPod. Ogg support would put it over the top for me, since i wouldn't have to re-rip all my music :)
Love your country always, but respect your government only when it deserves it. -- Mark Twain
I find it rather pathetic when everybody jumps at everything that might offer some sort of alternative to a M$ product/format. Esp. when it is Apple. I daresay that had M$ not been as successful as they are today, it would be Apple getting it in the arse everytime they incline themselves at angles greater than 5 degrees. I'm no M$ flag-carrier, but I find it annoying when people dislike Microsoft, but support another company full of equally insitutional techno-babble :S
Apple make way too expensive computers that usually are more hype than anything else.. Their software is very expensive, ugly and buggy.. They too take their customers for a ride, and can be just as obnoxious a company as their lost brethren over at M$..
There's no need for yet another propietary (?) format in the market (esp. one associated with Quicktime :S), and those who invest in it for the sole reason that it is not a M$ product need to be tarred and feathered .. :S People should plainly not support anything even remotely associated with DRM - boycott 'em all, just the same way as everyone should boycott anything vaguely associated with biometrics..
Where are open standards when you need them? </rant>As for it being a standard, every company calls its implementation the standard (Sony- Betamax). As a consumer, I decide what is the standard.