Fair game? The weirdness behind digital rights management

The New York Times posted an interesting bit of news today. In France, a small group of people were trying to get themselves prosecuted for a crime they apparently did commit. The crime: playing music bought on iTunes on something that isn’t made by iPod.

The protest was done by members of StopDRM, a group of computer users concerned with the growing restrictions on legally-purchased media. It was their attempt to point out just how unruly digital rights management (DRM) laws and measures can be.

They claim that the problem with digital controls and protection measures to stop piracy is that it also seems to lead to overt control of  the systems of digital media. “They say the law is intended to stop piracy, but I am not a pirate,” said Jerome Martinez, one of the lead protesters in this unusual event. “I support artists with legally purchased works, but I do not want to be forced to use a particular device to play them.”

That’s a valid point. You have to wonder how we’ll be able to choose how we play our music. Unlike earlier periods in technology, when there were fewer avenues for playing movies and music, the 21st century’s given way to more freedom because of the fluidity of the digital medium. The issue now is in enforcing certain protection measures without limiting the choices into a monopoly (or a ZenZunePodocracy).

The police in the story were unsure in how they were to deal with the issue, but the message is clear. Changes need to be made in digital rights management so that we can better distinguish between what should be all right and what is certainly wrong.

The New York Times posted an interesting bit of news today. In France, a small group of people were trying to get themselves prosecuted for a crime they apparently did commit. The crime: playing music bought on iTunes on something that isn’t made by iPod.

The protest was done by members of StopDRM, a group of computer users concerned with the growing restrictions on legally-purchased media. It was their attempt to point out just how unruly digital rights management (DRM) laws and measures can be.

They claim that the problem with digital controls and protection measures to stop piracy is that it also seems to lead to overt control of  the systems of digital media. “They say the law is intended to stop piracy, but I am not a pirate,” said Jerome Martinez, one of the lead protesters in this unusual event. “I support artists with legally purchased works, but I do not want to be forced to use a particular device to play them.”

That’s a valid point. You have to wonder how we’ll be able to choose how we play our music. Unlike earlier periods in technology, when there were fewer avenues for playing movies and music, the 21st century’s given way to more freedom because of the fluidity of the digital medium. The issue now is in enforcing certain protection measures without limiting the choices into a monopoly (or a ZenZunePodocracy).

The police in the story were unsure in how they were to deal with the issue, but the message is clear. Changes need to be made in digital rights management so that we can better distinguish between what should be all right and what is certainly wrong.