James Delahunty
8 Feb 2007 8:21
In a response to the open letter posted by Apple Computer Inc. CEO Steve Jobs yesterday, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has urged the company to license its FairPlay DRM technology to other music services. "Apple's offer to license FairPlay to other technology companies is a welcome breakthrough and would be a real victory for fans, artists and labels," the trade group said.
"There have been many services seeking a license to the Apple DRM. This would enable the interoperability that we have been urging for a very long time." In Jobs' open letter, he urged the record companies to stop forcing Digital Rights Management (DRM) use on online retailers, especially since music from unprotected CDs is ripped and put on P2P networks anyway.
The letter followed complaints in Europe, and even the threat of legal action, over the limitations that FairPlay puts on music purchased from the iTunes music store. Apple cannot deny it has benefited greatly from the iPod/iTunes tie that DRM has created. Nevertheless, DRM for now, from a consumer's perspective, is completely useless.
Source:
The Register