Old-Fashioned DRM Protects Harry Potter Book

Posted by timothy on Saturday July 9, 2005 @03:27PM from the but-is-it-a-good-book dept.

RMX writes "The Telegraph has a nice article about the steps that Scholastic is taking to protect the content of the print version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. They're delivering 10.8 million copies and need to ensure that this content isn't accessable by anyone before midnight. Technology includes high-tech (GPS to monitor delivery trucks progress and check that they did not deviate or stop.), low-tech (steel boxes & locks), social engineering notes (crates stacked up in the warehouses of delivery companies across America are marked: Please Do Not Open Before Midnight), and legal threats (As a final layer of security, booksellers have been forced to sign legal forms acknowledging that if they break the embargo, they will never again be supplied with a book by Scholastic). Think how much cheaper and easier it would be if they just used an E-book s with DRM. I'm all for Harry Potter protecting his rights; but it seems we keep getting closer and closer to the world described in Stallman's visionary The Right To Read article."

2 of 513 comments (clear)

Stallman a visionary?? by elgee · 2005-07-09 15:59 · Score: 0, Troll

Hahaha. That is funny.

Stallman is a crackpot. No more, no less.

Publishers have the right to distribute their book now they want. If you don't like it, don't buy it.
Re:Why? by aussie_a · 2005-07-09 16:12 · Score: 0, Troll

Are parents really going to line up at midnight to buy a kids book? Why bother? the kid should be in bed at that time anyways.

Welcome to the age where parents can't say no and instant gratification is more important then an education. Yes, there will be plenty of parents lining up with and without their fat kids in tow.