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Will People Really Boycott Apple Over DRM?

Posted by kdawson on from the for-tuppence-and-a-pretty-interface dept.

Ian Lamont writes "DefectiveByDesign.org is waging a battle against DRM with a 35-day campaign targeting various hardware and software products from Microsoft, Nintendo, and others. On day 11 it blasted iTunes for continuing to use DRM-encumbered music, games, TV shows, movies, audiobooks, and apps with DRM, while competitors are selling music without restrictions. DefectiveByDesign calls on readers to include 'iTunes gift cards and purchases in your boycott of all Apple products' to 'help drive change.' However, there's a big problem with this call to arms: most people simply don't care about iTunes DRM. Quoting: 'The average user is more than willing to pay more money for hobbled music because of user interface, ease of use, and marketing. ... Apple regularly features exclusive live sets from popular artists, while Amazon treats its digital media sales as one more commodity being sold.' What's your take on the DRM schemes used by Apple and other companies? Is a boycott called for, and can it be effective?"

11 of 664 comments (clear)

  1. Sorry... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It will never be effective. The average Joe coulden't tell you what DRM stood for let alone boycott it.

    1. Re:Sorry... by Angostura · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You know what, I don't think the average Joe actually will run into the DRM restrictions in iTunes and so won't give a flying whatever. I do know what DRM is, and it doesn't raise it's ugly head day-to-day.

      I buy music, I put it onto my iPod and burn it to CD. Now what am I meant to be protesting about again? ... That's a rhetorical question.

    2. Re:Sorry... by PriceIke · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Apple has a golden delicious reputation with most of its customers, even in spite of the very mild DRM attached to its music downloads, for two reasons: 1) the DRM is pathetically easy to remove, Apple knows it and anyone with half a brain will figure it out in approx. 2 seconds, and 2) Apple hasn't f*cked over its customers to a level anywhere approaching what Sony or Microsoft has done with their absolutely outrageous efforts at DRM. To this day I refuse to buy Sony products of any kind due to the rootkit bullsheet back in late 2005. And don't get me started on Microsoft and "Palladium".

      --
      It's not a lie. It's the truth with lossy compression.
    3. Re:Sorry... by 0100010001010011 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If we can't get people upset and up in arms about trampling of the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Police SWAT teams acting like mini-Army battalions, what the hell makes you think they'll get motivated enough to top buying Apple stuff?

      Apathetic indeed

  2. I have by tamarik · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I, for one consumer, already have. I don't buy Apple products because of the DRM. Creative Zen MP3 player, Dell, and Fujitsu laptops, and Samsung i760 cellphone. My ex uses a Mac Mini. My best friend sweears by his iPhone and a couple Macs. Nice machines! Apple looks like a good OS but this danged DRM is the showstopper.

    Bah! Come on Apple, lighten up. You seem to think all yer customers are sneaks and thieves, like Sam's or Best Buy.

    1. Re:I have by falcon5768 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      First off, your kidding yourself if you think your laptops dont have DRM on them. Go play something HD on a older digital monitor with a older connection and talk to us. Hell scre that you using XP? Yeah I thought so.

      Second you think Apple actually WANTS DRM? Apple isnt in the music making buisness, nor or they in the video making buisness. They sell machines to do it, tools to do it, but ultimately they are not making movies and music. So where is it for them to WANT DRM? They want to sell you shit. Its the people they deal with, the major labels who WANT to make sure you get their crap and dont steal it. Apple practically makes nothing off the stuff they sell in the store. So little that the labels play to raise their rates a while back basically was countered with Apple saying "fine we will close the store then." They didnt even flinch when NBC left them, which says a lot about how much money they are really making with these deals that 1-2 especially when you consider that Apple is the one paying the hosting fee and maintenance fees for running the store, not the labels who just provide the song or video.

      So really what you think your doing in boycotting them is just being stupid and showing your lack of knowledge of the situation. Because Apple really isnt in the business to DRM crap, and your saying they are just shows you to be a idiot.

      --

      "Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."

  3. people want software they can use by thegoldenear · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "The average user is more than willing to pay more money for hobbled music because of user interface, ease of use"

    Why should it be surprising that people are willing to pay for ease of use? it can mean the difference between actually being able to use something and not being able to.
    Most people can't use most of most software.

  4. Uphill battle by bignetbuy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    DefectiveByDesign would have better luck picking on Microsoft or some of the game publishers. Apple has managed to find the sweet spot between user freedom and DRM. Yes, Apple still uses DRM but it doesn't encumber a majority of Apple iTMS users.

    Let's run through Apple's DRM:

    1. Can play music on up to five different computers. So, home, work, laptop, and two other places are covered.
    2. Can play music on iPod. So, can take music with us and play almost anywhere.
    3. When de-authorize / re-authorize computers as needed.
    4. Can rip music to Audio CD and *STRIP OUT DRM ENTIRELY* from the music track.

    I hate DRM as much as the next /'er but the above "restrictions" are pretty darn loose. When iTMS and its uber-convenience is added into the equation, Apple's DRM becomes a minor annoyance. Point-Click-Purchase? One-click purchases? Recommendations based on previous purchases? It becomes pretty easy to overlook the little bit of DRM that is involved.

    I'm not an Apple fanboy either:

    [me@mydesktop ~]$ uname -a Linux my.rhel.desktop 2.6.18-92.1.18.el5 #1 SMP Wed Nov 5 09:00:19 EST 2008 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux

  5. Re:No by cabjf · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Not only that, but a boycott of Apple would play right into the record companies. They demanded DRM in the music store to begin with, so Apple came up with a solution. But then, as the iTunes store grew, the record companies realized that Apple was in control because of the very thing they demanded was in place. Why do you think Amazon can sell DRM-free tracks? The record companies are trying to break Apple's stranglehold on the downloadable music market. Although, given that iTunes does have some DRM free tracks from one record company, I am willing to bet Apple would rather just sell them without the DRM as well.

  6. Re:No by cgenman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What you're looking for is iTunes Plus. Bog standard AAC files in high bitrate, for the same cost as DRM-encumbered files.

    If you really want to show that you care about a lack of DRM, skew the sales numbers so that non-DRM files are obviously outselling the encumbered ones.

    --
    The ______ Agenda
  7. Re:Their fault? by DurendalMac · · Score: 5, Insightful

    THIS! Defectivebydesign has shown themselves to be just another group of ill-informed asshats. Apple does not have control over whether or not they put DRM on music. The labels do. EMI has DRM-free tracks. So do a lot of indie labels. The other big three would need to greenlight DRM-free tracks for Apple to sell them. This has been known for a long time, but of course DBD chooses to ignore it in favor of sensationalist crap. DRM sucks, but they're blaming the wrong person here. Now, Apple has some DRM crap that's no fun, but they need to stick with stuff that's legit.