I’ve just been reading an interesting article by Apple Chief Wizard, Steve Jobs, discussing DRM (digital rights management) on music. He makes some very interesting points about the pressure put on the likes of Apple to open up music from the iTunes store so it can be played on any mp3 player.
He makes some interesting points regarding the requirement from the big four record companies for digital distributors to use DRM to protect all tracks sold, when CDs are entirely DRM free and account for some 97% of music sold.
The points he makes suggest that there is a long way to go before all digitally distributed music is available DRM free. Perhaps the record companies have to accept that there will always be people that will obtain music illegally. Perhaps the way forward is instead of charging per track, you pay a monthly subscription which varies by usage, much like a mobile phone with a set number of minutes. Once you reach your allowance you pay a per hour fee to your monthly subscription, and the royalties are then allocated once the device has been docked with the pc and usage data uploaded.
Although it does sound a little big brother, it would encourage the sharing of new music, because what you have on your ipod or whatever doesn’t matter - it’s how much you listen to it that matters, charts would be based on “earplay” rather than purchases and the whole world would be a happier place. World peace would follow shortly after, and finally, the Vulcans would decide that we are an advanced enough species for them to make First Contact. Hurrah. The End.
