Labels Push for a Unified DRM Standard

thejoelpatrol writes "Bad news for Apple fanatics but good news for all the crazy slashdotters who want an iPod but feel dirty using Apple's DRM: the labels are getting together and insisting that online stores standardize their DRM methods. Being the providers of the music, the labels clearly wield a lot of power, but so does Apple: without iTunes, the online music business is next to nothing. Will Apple give in? Not if they can help it -- they're on top of the world. Before anyone messes it up, AAC is an open format, while the Fairplay DRM standard is not."

Comments

Re:Very good

[InternationalCow]

Not at all. Do you honestly believe that the labels are doing this for your (the customer's) good, to enable you to choose the mediaplayer and format you want? Then you're truly naive. Labels are greedy, greedy and greedy, in that order. The only reason that they are banding together on DRM now is that they are afraid that they will lose control (=revenue) over their digital music offerings to Apple, Microsoft or some other digital content provider. Which would serve them right.

Already messed up

[zurab]

Before anyone messes it up, AAC is an open format, while the Fairplay DRM standard is not.

I don't know what "open" means in this case, but AAC is patent-encumbered. If you want to distribute an encoder or a decoder you have to license those patents:

Who needs to license MPEG-4 AAC patents?

An MPEG-4 AAC patent license is required for manufacturers or developers of complete (or substantially complete) end-user encoder and/or decoder products, or for manufacturers/developers of component encoder and/or decoder products that are provided directly to end-users.

So, in a way, the submitter already messed it up.

Re:Already messed up

[damiam]

Open as in "well-documented".

Case Study...

[MadMacSkillz]

I am also in the camp that would like to see copy protection gone, even though I am a so-called "content provider" myself.

I recorded a CD and released it online. I also allow some of the tracks to be downloaded for free at MacIdol. And here's what I've found...

As I have made more tracks available for free downloading, CD sales have INCREASED. I think I know at least one reason. We all can recall an artist that we sorta liked on first listening, but then liked more and more as we listened more and more. When you allow several songs to be downloaded for free, you increase your chances of this happening. If people dig the music enough, they might order the CD. If they don't, then you've lost nothing. But they still have your "free" songs out there and they have friends, and you never know.

And instead of releasing the worst songs from the disc for free, I released what I thought were the best songs. I wish big artists would do this.

I'm in line to get the CD into iTunes, but the waiting list to get in is long, so it can take months for a little guy to get in. But I just see iTunes as another way to get exposure. Once the CD is on iTunes, I will still allow free downloading of some songs, because I really believe it will help, not hurt, CD sales. My freely downloadable songs are located at:

http://www.macidol.com/jamroom/bands/999/music.php

Re:It might not be good for Apple to fight this

[Sparks23]

Apple's already released updates for the iPod firmwares multiple times; if the DRM changed, they'd just release a new firmware for the existing iPod owners. They already released the new 'Apple lossless' codec in an iPod firmware update.

Re:As if apple ever had any leverage

[falcon5768]

Actually your wrong Apple has a lot of clout. As it is the record labels tried and failed to renegotiate the .99 a track deal and Apple flat out said no. Your also wrong in think its a 50% marketshare (its actualy around 70% accourding to soundscan.)

Also lets get a few other things straight.. Balmer was wrong in saying the most common format was stolen music, actually the most common formate is PREVIOUSLY bought music (ie CD's) his methodology in saying that was that .mp3 = stolen. Balmer was in no way trying to say people download from elseware, he was just trying to scare the labels into using Windows user rights free DRM.

Also your right iTunes is ecensially a iPod selling tool... but last I checked Apple owned 70% of the market for music devices as well... so its working. Likewise, Apple DOES make 3 cents a track.. .03 * 1 mill isnt chump change. Also Apple is selling the distrubution method. Remeber the lables HAVE tried this before... they failed misserably.

Also might help if you used tags to format your post ;)