What is DRM, and the Pros and Cons of Buying Music Online
What is DRM, and the Pros and Cons of Buying Music Online
In this issue of my newsletter, I want to talk about something called DRM. DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, and if you ever have purched music (or movies and TV shows for that matter) online, or are thinking about doing so in the future, it's important for you to know about DRM and understand how it affects you.
Basically, DRM is something the recording industry (including music, film, etc.) is very gung-ho about, and is a way for them to put limits on what you buy. And really, in a way, is a way for them to keep you from really owning what you've paid for.
You may remember that back in the early 1980s, a lot of big companies from the movie industry were freaking out over the idea of VCRs, since they figured it would cause everyone in the world to steal their movies and never pay for them. As a result, they tried to sue to keep VCRs off the market.
Fortunately, the courts decided that this was unreasonable, and established "fair use" laws that allowed you to tape a show and watch it later, or even make a backup copy of movies you bought, as long as you didn't try to sell, rent, etc. the copy.
After that, the recording industry (which I'll use as a blanket term to cover the music labels, broadcast & cable TV companies, the film industry, etc.) got upset about CDs and DVDs, and tried (with varying success) to build in copy protection methods to prevent you from even making a backup copy of your music or your movies.
Even though this is a perfectly reasonable thing for you to want to be able to do, in case you scratch a DVD for example.
The recording industry has basically had a habit of treating their customers as criminals, and has fought tooth and nail against any new technology as it came along, like CD & DVD burners in home computers, iPods and other portable music players, MP3s, etc.
Which brings me to DRM.
DRM is the recording industry's way of saying that when you buy music, or a TV show, or a movie, that you're not *really* buying it, and so you have no right to be able to play it or keep it the way you want, and you basically have to ask their permission to use it. Even though you've paid for it.
Unless you get DRM-free music (more on this in a moment), then the song, TV show, etc. that you "bought" comes with special code in it that prevents it from being played how and when you want it.
The computer has to be connected to the Internet and check in with a special computer called a "DRM license key server" to make sure you're allowed to play it. And if you want to copy it from an old computer to a new one, or put it on an iPod, burn it on a CD, etc. you need to be authorized to do so, and your computer has to ask permission.
Imagine you'd bought a CD at the store and played it on your home stereo, then decided to listen to it in the car, and when you tried, instead of the music, all you heard was a voice saying "Nope! Too bad. You've played it in one CD player already, that's all you get!"
You probably wouldn't be too happy about that, would you? Well that's pretty much what we're talking about here.
There are a variety of places you can legally buy music and video these days, including Napster (which originally was for sharing music without paying for it), and iTunes, as well as several others. Most of what these online stores sell has this DRM in it, because the recording industry refused to let them sell it otherwise.
iTunes now (and for a while now) has *some* of their music in "iTunes Plus", which is better sound quality form, which has no DRM. You can find these songs by going to the iTunes Store and clicking the "iTunes Plus" link on the right. Everything in that section of the store is DRM-free, but only a limited amount of the music is available there (due to the recording industry).
Now this may just sound like an inconvenience, but not really a *big* problem. After all, the average person doesn't own multiple computers and want to put their music on all of them, and put it on an iPod, etc., and so probably won't have to worry about these restrictions, right?
Well, there's another problem: Microsoft tried having their own music store at one point, as did Yahoo, but both have closed the doors on their music stores. As a result, they want to shut down their DRM license key servers (the computers that keep track of whether you own a song or video, and give your computer or iPod, etc. permission to play the song or video). But when they do, that's when you have a big problem.
Anyone who bought music from the Microsoft MSN music store or the Yahoo music store will not be able to keep playing their music at some point after those servers get shut down. It may not be a problem right away, but if those people buy a new computer and want to move their music over to it, the music won't play on the computer. And if they get a new music player like an iPod, same problem.
For this very reason, when I buy music I'm still a *lot* more likely to buy a CD than to buy a song online, just as I'm more likely to buy a DVD (or Blu-Ray disc) than I am to buy a download of a movie. I do buy music from iTunes sometimes, but I'm careful only to get the DRM-free "iTunes Plus" music.
It may seem funny coming from someone who is as into technology as I am, but sometimes it's best to stick with older technology. Especially when some giant corporation is too scared of new technology and distrustful of their own customers to allow the new technology to work the way it should, in the interests of you and me.
Hope that makes sense.
In this issue of my newsletter, I want to talk about something called DRM. DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, and if you ever have purched music (or movies and TV shows for that matter) online, or are thinking about doing so in the future, it's important for you to know about DRM and understand how it affects you.
Basically, DRM is something the recording industry (including music, film, etc.) is very gung-ho about, and is a way for them to put limits on what you buy. And really, in a way, is a way for them to keep you from really owning what you've paid for.
You may remember that back in the early 1980s, a lot of big companies from the movie industry were freaking out over the idea of VCRs, since they figured it would cause everyone in the world to steal their movies and never pay for them. As a result, they tried to sue to keep VCRs off the market.
Fortunately, the courts decided that this was unreasonable, and established "fair use" laws that allowed you to tape a show and watch it later, or even make a backup copy of movies you bought, as long as you didn't try to sell, rent, etc. the copy.
After that, the recording industry (which I'll use as a blanket term to cover the music labels, broadcast & cable TV companies, the film industry, etc.) got upset about CDs and DVDs, and tried (with varying success) to build in copy protection methods to prevent you from even making a backup copy of your music or your movies.
Even though this is a perfectly reasonable thing for you to want to be able to do, in case you scratch a DVD for example.
The recording industry has basically had a habit of treating their customers as criminals, and has fought tooth and nail against any new technology as it came along, like CD & DVD burners in home computers, iPods and other portable music players, MP3s, etc.
Which brings me to DRM.
DRM is the recording industry's way of saying that when you buy music, or a TV show, or a movie, that you're not *really* buying it, and so you have no right to be able to play it or keep it the way you want, and you basically have to ask their permission to use it. Even though you've paid for it.
Unless you get DRM-free music (more on this in a moment), then the song, TV show, etc. that you "bought" comes with special code in it that prevents it from being played how and when you want it.
The computer has to be connected to the Internet and check in with a special computer called a "DRM license key server" to make sure you're allowed to play it. And if you want to copy it from an old computer to a new one, or put it on an iPod, burn it on a CD, etc. you need to be authorized to do so, and your computer has to ask permission.
Imagine you'd bought a CD at the store and played it on your home stereo, then decided to listen to it in the car, and when you tried, instead of the music, all you heard was a voice saying "Nope! Too bad. You've played it in one CD player already, that's all you get!"
You probably wouldn't be too happy about that, would you? Well that's pretty much what we're talking about here.
There are a variety of places you can legally buy music and video these days, including Napster (which originally was for sharing music without paying for it), and iTunes, as well as several others. Most of what these online stores sell has this DRM in it, because the recording industry refused to let them sell it otherwise.
iTunes now (and for a while now) has *some* of their music in "iTunes Plus", which is better sound quality form, which has no DRM. You can find these songs by going to the iTunes Store and clicking the "iTunes Plus" link on the right. Everything in that section of the store is DRM-free, but only a limited amount of the music is available there (due to the recording industry).
Now this may just sound like an inconvenience, but not really a *big* problem. After all, the average person doesn't own multiple computers and want to put their music on all of them, and put it on an iPod, etc., and so probably won't have to worry about these restrictions, right?
Well, there's another problem: Microsoft tried having their own music store at one point, as did Yahoo, but both have closed the doors on their music stores. As a result, they want to shut down their DRM license key servers (the computers that keep track of whether you own a song or video, and give your computer or iPod, etc. permission to play the song or video). But when they do, that's when you have a big problem.
Anyone who bought music from the Microsoft MSN music store or the Yahoo music store will not be able to keep playing their music at some point after those servers get shut down. It may not be a problem right away, but if those people buy a new computer and want to move their music over to it, the music won't play on the computer. And if they get a new music player like an iPod, same problem.
For this very reason, when I buy music I'm still a *lot* more likely to buy a CD than to buy a song online, just as I'm more likely to buy a DVD (or Blu-Ray disc) than I am to buy a download of a movie. I do buy music from iTunes sometimes, but I'm careful only to get the DRM-free "iTunes Plus" music.
It may seem funny coming from someone who is as into technology as I am, but sometimes it's best to stick with older technology. Especially when some giant corporation is too scared of new technology and distrustful of their own customers to allow the new technology to work the way it should, in the interests of you and me.
Hope that makes sense.
Labels: what does drm mean, what is drm
posted by Worth Godwin at
2:06 AM
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