@rossturk really good point – “the result of a revolution”
Blog
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Walmart retires DRM, deserts users on the way to freedom.
Similar to Amazon, MySpace and other online music vendors it appears Walmart is transitioning to DRM free music offerings. We applaud them for recognizing the information rights of their customers and removing the impediments to fair use which digital restrictions management imposes on users.
That being said, I am concerned about the way they chose to phase out and retire DRM in their offerings. Rather than making it a smooth transition, they plan to shutdown their DRM servers and terminate customer service for DRM’d music on October 9, 2008. By shutting down their DRM servers, they will cut off users from the ability to authorize new devices when transfering their songs between devices. Their recomendation: burn your music to a cd before its too late! This is a classic example of why DRM (digital restrictions management) is bad news.
“Beginning October 9, we will no longer be able to assist with digital rights management issues for protected WMA files purchased from Walmart.com. If you do not back up your files before this date, you will no longer be able to transfer your songs to other computers or access your songs after changing or reinstalling your operating system or in the event of a system crash.” (via BoingBoing)
Retiring DRM is a giant leap in the right direction (one that all vendors should take), but its important that they not leave their customers in the lurch. Would it really be that difficult to offer users the opportunity to freely re-download purchased music in a DRM free and unencumbered format? Doing so would make them standout a defender of customer rights, in a market where they are lagging rather than leading.
Let this be a lesson to us all; reject DRM in all its forms if you plan to use the products you purchase long term. Whether it be music, software or books; DRM meens you are renting your legally purchased content/information, and not purcashing it.
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-24
- @uid0 the upgrade process was a very minimal annoyance – less than an hour #
- EPIC BAIL! FAIL BAIL! BAIL FAIL! #
- I don’t mind a campaign #suspend I just worry about some kernel drivers getting all loopy after #wakeup #
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-23
- did anyone attend Access 2 Knowledge 3 in Switzerland? http://www.law.yale.edu/intellectuallife/informationsocietyproject.htm #
- @cdibona ah…. schöne München. can’t wait ’til I go next month #
- @sjvn what’s WNC? #
- oooh… wifi + 3G = nice job #
- @guyma haha! no, I finally found a device that meets my high standards for open platform + user friendly #
- @storming indeed. removing the itemized deductions on federal taxes for mortgages would be a good start #
- @storming @jrep having lived through a foreclosure I can tell you it fucks the entire family. my ‘rents taught me how not to manage money #
- Ooh Ooh! Ancient yeast recovered and reborn in beer! I can haz…? http://tinyurl.com/426r2w #
- upgraded to kubuntu intrepid – purty desktop! #
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-22
- on conference call about SubConf: http://www.subconf.com/ #
- @storming ooh.. nice. thanks for the tip #
- @mjasay I didnt’ know Arsenal had switched to la liga 😉 #
- if you’ve never seen @gstein speak, you can catch him at SubConf – http://www.subconf.com/ #
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Access to Knowledge Conference
Some things I just find out about too late. Consider the Access to Knowledge conference hosted by the Information Society Project at Yale Law School. “A2K” was held in Switzerland from September 8 – 10. It looked like a really interesting conference about what we at GeekPAC like to call information rights. Check out this part:
The conference, the largest of its kind, will consider how, in a global knowledge economy, the ability to access and produce information and control its dissemination increasingly determines wealth, innovation, human development, and individual freedom.
This kind of terminology is very much in line with what we have in our position paper. Sometimes it feels like nobody else really pays attention to these issues, so it’s nice to see that we’re not alone. Hopefully, I won’t miss the conference the next time around.
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-21
- Jackie: nooo! princesses don’t play soccer! they wear high heels! #
- am I the only one who *likes* the new facebook UI? #
- received a note from my “[alma mater redacted] GXC Ministry of War” imploring me to spend my free time on the gocrosscampus ivy c10p. um, no #
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-20
- @laurencooney and the lesson is… when you want to pick up some cheap followers, just flame Oracle? I’ve wasted my time flaming Apple 😉 #
- yikes… is teh twitter broken???? #
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Twitter Updates for 2008-09-19
- eek! they changed mah twitter! #
- different take on Palin: http://www.slate.com/id/2200404/ doesn’t change my mind, but it makes me pause and think #
- @laurencooney hey when are you back in SFO? #
- @Roebot OMG I almost forgot! Yar yar yarrrrr! Avast, me hearties!!! #
- and in commemoration of this special day: http://tinyurl.com/mehearty #
- tee hee… I <3 my new avatar 🙂 #
- @guyma I don’t think they have any choice. would be awfully hard to withdraw it #
- @rachelchalmers have you seen the CUBiT trial? http://www.collab.net/products/CUBiT/tryit.html cloud-based build + test automation #
- rt @jdickerson Palin like Cheney: hides from press, asserts thin privs, never blinks, novel view of exec branch. Unlike Dick: shoots animals #
- @jrep sad, but oh so true #
- hmm… time to stir some shit. haven’t done enough of that lately. #
- @uid0 I know I can always count on you 😉 #
- @Roebot I have to confess – a professional designer did it for me for fun in his spare time #
- retweet @slashdot “Political Viewpoints Linked To Fear http://tinyurl.com/3v9uw8 ” #
- stop the RIAA from legislating business models. again. http://tinyurl.com/3sez6c #
- @jrep LOL! and yet, sometimes we need to hear the obvious. er… speaking for myself, anyway 🙂 #
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