Nokia Urges Linux Developers To Be Cool With DRM

superglaze writes in to note that according to Nokia's software chief, its plans for open source include getting developers to accept things like DRM, commercial IP rights, and SIM locks. "Jaaksi admitted that concepts like these 'go against the open-source philosophy,' but said they were necessary components of the current mobile industry. 'Why do we need closed vehicles? We do,' he said. 'Some of these things harm the industry but they're here [as things stand]. These are touchy, emotional issues, but this dialogue is very much needed. As an industry, we plan to use open-source technologies, but we are not yet ready to play by the rules; but this needs to work the other way round too.'"

Comments

Re:Say what?!?

[kipman725]

well thats the wonder of the GPL, we can just take the most current version of QT and FORK.

Re:Say what?!?

[Constantine XVI]

They're still held by the Free Qt deal. If they stop releasing OSS versions of Qt, it's forcefully taken from them.

Re:uh-oh

[geminidomino]

If so, we could fork it (being GPL... the BSD license wouldn't allow us that freedom). Stop spreading FUD. If it was BSD licensed, you COULD still fork it. Take the last BSD licensed version, fork from that, poof. Same as with the GPL.

Jaaksi's blog

[Anonymous Coward]

Ari Jaaksi blogs at jaaksi.blogspot.com, if you want to directly talk to him.

Re:Say what?!?

[PurpleBob]

Google knows all. KDE Free Qt Foundation

I hadn't heard of it before, either. Now I'm wondering: what additional power does this agreement give them? Presumably everyone already has the right to fork Qt.

Re:Say what?!?

[Anonymous Coward]

Your complaint doesn't make any sense. Trolltech, the company that created Qt, is already dedicated exclusively to improving Qt. Qt is their flagship product, they're not going to let it suffer. They've created an awesome product without any help from Nokia, and that's not going to change just because Nokia chooses some other GUI toolkit.. You didn't RTFA did you? Nokia owns Trolltech.

I don't know where to begin...

[hummassa]

First, DRM does not exist. Content that can be viewed or listened to can be copied.
Second, attempts at implementing DRM are a _terrible_ thing -- because they are just attempts to prevent honest people from exercising their fair use rights, and lock people on carriers, distributors, or platforms. Nothing else. Forget the 'piracy!' screams, it just translates to 'the consumer wants to buy a CD and listen to the same music on his iPod without paying another fee for it' or 'the consumer wants to watch the movie on this DVD... but after, he wants to lend it to a friend, that will watch it and we will not receive any money for it'.

Why can't I use DRM to protect and maintain a durable finely gained control of how my data is used and by whom? Answer: because it's mathematically impossible.

What's the end you want? One that draws your foes into a collabrative fold, or one that keeps you unnecessarily at odds depriving everyone of more choice, more ability? I, personally, don't care if they try to implement DRM schemes... as long as the Free Software they are using to leverage their problem remains Free. The case, here, is that they want to use software developed by thousands of people against the license that those same people freed their software. The issue is the same: DRMers want to be in control of what people do with their own things.