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Music Companies Mull Ditching DRM

Posted by Zonk on from the dogs-and-cats-living-together-mass-hysteria dept.

PoliTech writes to mention an International Herald Tribue article that is reporting the unthinkable: Record companies are considering ditching DRM for their mp3 albums. For the first time, flagging sales of online music tracks are beginning to make the big recording companies consider the wisdom of selling music without 'rights management' technologies attached. The article notes that this is a step the recording industry vowed 'never to take'. From the article: "Most independent record labels already sell tracks digitally compressed in MP3 format, which can be downloaded, e-mailed or copied to computers, cellphones, portable music players and compact discs without limit. Partially, the independents see providing songs in MP3 as a way of generating publicity that could lead to future sales. Should one of the big four take that route, however, it would be a capitulation to the power of the Internet, which has destroyed their monopoly over the worldwide distribution of music in the past decade and allowed file-sharing to take its place."

6 of 318 comments (clear)

  1. ohh, this isn't a good thing... by jimstapleton · · Score: 4, Funny

    next thing you know, they'll be using OSS editing tools
    then servers...
    After that?
    It'll be pandemonium, they'll be joyfully frolicking in the free and open streets... Arms flailing, chainsaws revved...

    --
    34486853790
    Connection too slow for X forwarding? Try "ssh -CX user@host"
  2. Wow! This is going to make some great reading... by justinbach · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...right after I get back from my ski trip to hell :-)

    --
    I left my wallet in El Sigundo!
  3. Oh, the irony by geoff+lane · · Score: 3, Funny

    Microsoft cripples Vista with DRM and the potential users of DRM don't want it?

    Oh, the irony.

  4. What's this vinyl you speak of by Itchyeyes · · Score: 3, Funny

    Vinyl? They make siding out of that right?

  5. Re:About time by somersault · · Score: 3, Funny

    *shuffles his feet* :/

    --
    which is totally what she said
  6. Flagging Sales? by sconeu · · Score: 3, Funny

    For the first time, flagging sales of online music tracks are beginning to make the big recording companies consider the wisdom of selling music without 'rights management' technologies attached.

    But I thought we needed harder DRM because the flagging sales were caused by those Evil Content Pirates(tm)!!!!!

    I'm so confused, I don't know what to believe anymore!!!

    --
    General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.