In copyright infringement news

[robnix]

The problem is copy protection. Put it on things and people complain it does not work with what they have. Use I-tunes and you basically pay for what you could get for free just to be legal (the way I do it). So the recording industry has to learn, work on the new technology, and convince people to pay for something they could get for free, just to be legal. Thats a task.

At least with tapes recording was a pain, and for many people it was easier to just buy it then to record from there friends. The problem now, it is about the same "work" to do it legally or not, the difference being if you pay.

It is not surprise the recording industry is looking for new protections.

No, you misunderstand my point.

Let's take a look at some copy protection schemes that have been broken:

Changing Address Marks
Hardware Dongles - Remember those?
Macrovision
SecureRom
XCP - The Sony Rootkit
SafeDisc
StarForce - The one that killed some DVD-RW's
CSS
AACS - So powerful, that once the first key was discovered, new keys are useless before they even get released.
Steam
WPA
FairPlay


None have worked, some have actually been destructive, some have kept average consumers from using legally purchased media. If you combine these new proposals with the DMCA, I could go to Federal Prison for installing software on my computer that copies my 4 year olds DVD's to DVD+R for backups. This would constitute both 'intent' and 'circumventing a copy protection scheme'.

So instead of looking at the failures, and the draconian nature of some of these propsals, the entertainment cartels stay in the dark ages by giving money to Congress to pass new laws. Money that's wasted, since real piracy isn't at home, it's in other countries where groups make bit for bit copies of software, music, games etc...and dump them around the world cheap. The ironic part of these copies is that most of them contain the same copy protection that the cartels put on the disc in the first place.

For the cartels to slow down piracy at home, they need to change their entire attitude towards the consumer buying digital media.

Music that only plays in itunes or an ipod? Music that I need WMP11 or a Zune to play? Online movies that only work in WMP10-11 or in some special player? Why would I strangle myself and my purchases that way? How much more music do you think would be sold at 50 cents a song? Or full movies at $4.99 a download? Music and movies that could be downloaded, and copied to cd's or dvd's that would play in any mp3 player, cd player, dvd player, or on any operating system with any media player? Why would I buy music or movies through itunes, when I can get the CD or DVD for approx. the same price, and play them in any format I want, anywhere I want?

Instead of being concerned with how to get the product sold, they're more concerned with how to make it hard to use and copy. Instead of looking at the lower cost of the delivery mechanism, digital vs. retail store, and the profit margin, they look at how much could potentially be lost by piracy. None of these download services offer any advantage over buying a hard copy, and that's where they fail.

[bornl33t]

No, you misunderstand my point.

Let's take a look at some copy protection schemes that have been broken:

Changing Address Marks
Hardware Dongles - Remember those?
Macrovision
SecureRom
XCP - The Sony Rootkit
SafeDisc
StarForce - The one that killed some DVD-RW's
CSS
AACS - So powerful, that once the first key was discovered, new keys are useless before they even get released.
Steam
WPA
FairPlay


None have worked, some have actually been destructive, some have kept average consumers from using legally purchased media. If you combine these new proposals with the DMCA, I could go to Federal Prison for installing software on my computer that copies my 4 year olds DVD's to DVD+R for backups. This would constitute both 'intent' and 'circumventing a copy protection scheme'.

So instead of looking at the failures, and the draconian nature of some of these propsals, the entertainment cartels stay in the dark ages by giving money to Congress to pass new laws. Money that's wasted, since real piracy isn't at home, it's in other countries where groups make bit for bit copies of software, music, games etc...and dump them around the world cheap. The ironic part of these copies is that most of them contain the same copy protection that the cartels put on the disc in the first place.

For the cartels to slow down piracy at home, they need to change their entire attitude towards the consumer buying digital media.

Music that only plays in itunes or an ipod? Music that I need WMP11 or a Zune to play? Online movies that only work in WMP10-11 or in some special player? Why would I strangle myself and my purchases that way? How much more music do you think would be sold at 50 cents a song? Or full movies at $4.99 a download? Music and movies that could be downloaded, and copied to cd's or dvd's that would play in any mp3 player, cd player, dvd player, or on any operating system with any media player? Why would I buy music or movies through itunes, when I can get the CD or DVD for approx. the same price, and play them in any format I want, anywhere I want?

Instead of being concerned with how to get the product sold, they're more concerned with how to make it hard to use and copy. Instead of looking at the lower cost of the delivery mechanism, digital vs. retail store, and the profit margin, they look at how much could potentially be lost by piracy. None of these download services offer any advantage over buying a hard copy, and that's where they fail.

You nailed it.

[Lohman446]

I tunes can be burned to disc and played in any CD player

[robnix]

I tunes can be burned to disc and played in any CD player

There's a limit on the number of times you can do that. Yes, it's 7 times per playlist which should be sufficient for anyone, and there are workarounds, but those workarounds would most likely be a violation of the DMCA.