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RIAA wants to assassinate MP3

Posted by Hemos on from the got-you-in-my-sites dept.

Cicero writes "Wired News has an article about the Recording Industry Association of America's (RIAA) plans for killing the mp3 format. It basically involves having the major record labels release music on a yet-to-be-defined, proprietary format called SDMI. The kicker -- require software and hardware companies that license the format to include some sort of kill switch which would prohibit the user from downloading and playing mp3 files. " I'd insert a snide comment here, but...I don't think I need to.

7 of 205 comments (clear)

  1. Ok, that's it.. I'm buying a RIO. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4

    I haven't seen a need to buy any of the portable mp3 players, yet, but I'm going to now.

    And perhaps it's now time to start giving them as gifts. With this sort of direct manipulation, it's time for consumers to react, in an organized fasion.

    Go Support the mp3 industry. Vote with your $$.
    (if you have any! I know there's alot of students here! :) )

  2. disabling mechanisms... by aaronl · · Score: 4

    So they're going to kill the ability to play MP3's in hardware? Hmm... interesting. Just like Sony stopped anyone from playing out-of-region games or copied games on the Playstation, eh?

  3. Anti-trust? by jwriney · · Score: 5

    Is it me, or does this reek of using of unfairly shutting out competition? Apparently, if RIAA has their way, this new format will be ALL you can use, unless they decide differently. That's like Sony saying, "If you want to have a recording of a song, you MUST use Minidiscs. End of story."(note: nothing against minidiscs)

    Also, from a technical standpoint, how do they propose to do this? Release a new version of Windows that automatically searches and destroys non-RIAA music files on bootup? FTP clients that refuse to download *.mp3? I think not.

    --John Riney
    jwriney@awod.com

    1. Re:Anti-trust? by cryptwhomp · · Score: 4

      Technically, it's easy. Either put in the timebomb, or you don't get access to the API's to program SDMI. Very similar to what the justice dept. was proposing with the encryption key escrow debate. What they are trying to leverage is the fact that they feel that everyone will have to program for SDMI for market reasons ... and what they have failed to understand is the open source movement programming for more than simply market reasons. That reason, more than any other, is why this will fail.

      --
      "Those who would give up essential liberty for temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety" - Benjamin Franklin,
  4. Liked this quote by Analog · · Score: 4
    The RIAA has made it clear that it's willing to fight for its interests in the courts. It has the money and the muscle to try to convince technology companies and Internet music vendors to see things its way.

    Considering that the only way this will work is if the 'technology companies' run out of money while fighting the suits, and considering where most of the money is these days (checked the market caps of the 'internet stocks' lately?), methinks the RIAA may be in for an unpleasant surprise. It's tough when you find out you're not the biggest kid on the block anymore.

  5. RIAA doesn't get it; And they never will. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5

    Ahh, it's refreshing to see technology ridding the planet of a horrible evil. The record industry has had it too good for too long; They can see the end and they're trying their old tricks to put off the inevitable. I don't know who their technical consultants are, but they obviously don't have a f*cking clue what's going on.

    Reasons why the RIAA is toast, or, mp3 is dead, long live mp3!

    #1: It's the Recording Industry of AMERICA

    Last time I checked, there were a lot of other countries, with a lot of music besides the good 'old (free?) USofA. Mp3 lets me get music that never makes it to the border in conventional format. And there's lots of coutries that have a skeptical view of american politking.

    #2: Mp3 is Open. And out there. Too bad.

    I have source code to players and encoders. 'Nuff said. I'll give those up when you pry them from my cold dead hands. And, any EE worth his salt could hack together a DSP mp3 player in a few weeks with little or no problems. Patents or no patents, mpeg technology is here to stay.

    #3: You have to listen to the music

    Unfortunately for the RIAA, you have to be able to listen to the music at some point. This is the downfall of all secure executable/information copyright enforcing schemes. At some point the information is viewable, and you can always resample it. Decks with phiber outs and pure digital signals make this an almost lossless proposition. Take your music and resample it to mp3.

    Does anyone remember DIVX? If the consumer doesn't want it, then it ain't gunna happen. This is a demand economy!

    "Do it, do it now kids! Stick it to the Man!" -- Duckman

  6. The RIAA must take paranoid pills or something. by Fish+Man · · Score: 5

    I'm old enough to remember when Dolby-B noise reduction was introduced.

    The RIAA went bonkers.

    "Cassettes recorded with Dolby-B will allow people to pirate and trade albums! This will be the end of the music industry."

    They tried to outlaw Dolby-B.

    Now cassettes encoded with Dolby-B are the music industry's bread and butter.

    When television came out, the movie studios went bat s**t. "No one will go to the movies anymore!"

    Didn't happen.

    When VHS tape came out, the Movie studios went bat s**t again. "This will kill the movie industry."

    Now the sales and rental of VHS movies represents the most profitable aspect of movie making.

    When DAT came out. RIAA went nuts again. "This will kill the recording industry."

    Didn't happen.

    You'd think by now the people in the entertainment industry would have learned not to be so damn PARANOID!

    Why can't they embrace MP3 like they eventually did the cassette? THEY can distribute their product in MP3 format!

    New consumer recording formats and distribution means have NEVER measurably hurt the recording industry! Why can't they look at their own history and learn from it?