I would like to start by thanking Steve Jobs for offering his provocative perspective on the role of digital rights management (DRM) in the electronic content marketplace and for bringing to the forefront an issue of great importance to both the industry and consumers.
Reality: “I would like to beat Steve Jobs over the head with a blunt object for making people even think about this. I’ve been waking up in a cold sweat for a week now.
Macrovision has been in the content protection industry for more than 20 years, working closely with content owners of many types, including the major Hollywood studios, to help navigate the transition from physical to digital distribution. We have been involved with and have supported both prevention technologies and DRM that are on literally billions of copies of music, movies, games, software and other content forms, as well as hundreds of millions of devices across the world.
Translation: “Our business plan is absolutely screwed if DRM goes away.”
There are four key points that I would like to make in response to your letter.
Translation: “Please please please don’t point out any flaws in these arguments.”
DRM is broader than just music –
While your thoughts are seemingly directed solely to the music industry, the fact is that DRM also has a broad impact across many different forms of content and across many media devices. Therefore, the discussion should not be limited to just music. It is critical that as all forms of content move from physical to electronic there is an opportunity for DRM to be an important enabler across all content, including movies, games and software, as well as music.
Translation: “Gee Steve, we noticed that you left out the fact that Pixar uses DRM on their DVDs and such, and there’s DRM on the videos sold from the iTunes Store.”
DRM increases not decreases consumer value
BZZZT!!!! Big Fat Lie #1! DRM decreases the value of what I buy. If I buy a book, when I am done with it I can give it to someone, or a library. If I buy an eBook with DRM, when I am done with it, I am stuck with it.
If I buy a DVD, when I am done with it, I can loan it to a friend who can watch it and then give it back to me. If I buy a movie on iTunes, they have to come to my house to watch it.
Same thing if I buy a CD.
I can also — brace yourself — re-sell it myself! Used DVDs are just about as good as new DVDs. Try re-selling some of your iTunes Videos when you no longer want them. Oh wait, you can’t. So tell me again how this is better for me? Oooooh. It’s better for them. I get it now.
Imagine a world where you couldn’t sell your car or your house or your clothes when you no longer needed them. And you couldn’t give them away either. Who would profit from that? Would it be the people who buy stuff or the people who sell stuff?
Macrovision (and the RIAA and MPAA) would love nothing more than to figure out how to stop that. They would love us to all move to more DRM.
If I buy a DVD, I should be allowed to watch it on my Video iPod. The MPAA wants me to buy another copy of it.
DRM does nothing to help customers. It is purely designed to help the publishers of such content.
I believe that most piracy occurs because the technology available today has not yet been widely deployed to make DRM-protected legitimate content as easily accessible and convenient as unprotected illegitimate content is to consumers. The solution is to accelerate the deployment of convenient DRM-protected distribution channels—not to abandon them. Without a reasonable, consistent and transparent DRM we will only delay consumers in receiving premium content in the home, in the way they want it. For example, DRM is uniquely suitable for metering usage rights, so that consumers who don’t want to own content, such as a movie, can “rent” it. Similarly, consumers who want to consume content on only a single device can pay less than those who want to use it across all of their entertainment areas – vacation homes, cars, different devices and remotely.
Question: If a DVD is $15 today, do you suppose a DVD that I only want to watch on one device will be $10 or will a DVD I want to watch everywhere be $20?
What happens when I replace that DVD player (for example) with another one?
For that matter, why should it matter how many devices I want to watch it on? Whether I watch it on one DVD player or 10 does not increase their costs $1. Why should they get any more for me to watch this content anywhere I damn well please?
Abandoning DRM now will unnecessarily doom all consumers to a “one size fits all” situation that will increase costs for many of them.
DVDs play in all DVD players. What drives down prices is competition. If I can download the content instead of having to buy it in a store, it ought to be cheaper but ought to have all of the features that the store-bought version has, which means I can play it on any DVD player, and it has all the extras.
DRM will increase electronic distribution – Well maintained and reasonably implemented DRM will increase the electronic distribution of content, not decrease it. In this sense, DRM is an important ingredient in the overall success of the emerging digital world and especially cannot be overlooked for content creators and owners in the video industry. Quite simply, if the owners of high-value video entertainment are asked to enter, or stay in a digital world that is free of DRM, without protection for their content, then there will be no reason for them to enter, or to stay if they’ve already entered. The risk will be too great.
Oh those poor starving movie studios.
If they can’t compete in the market, other content providers will come along who can.
“Bakers have no incentive to let you sell their bread in a supermarket. They need you to come to their stores.” Well, then they are either going to have to be really good (good enough for me to make another stop) or they are going to lose business to those who sell their bread at the supermarket.
DRM needs to be interoperable and open –
I agree with you that there are difficult challenges associated with maintaining the controls of an interoperable DRM system, but it should not stop the industry from pursuing it as a goal. Truly interoperable DRM will hasten the shift to the electronic distribution of content and make it easier for consumers to manage and share content in the home – and it will enable it in an open environment where their content is portable across a number of devices, not held hostage to just one company’s products. DRM supporting open environments will benefit consumer electronics manufacturers by encouraging and enabling them to create ever more innovative and sophisticated devices for consumers that play late running premium content from a number of sources.
This is like saying that unicorns in carnivals need to have a workers union. Interoperability and DRM Are Mutually Exclusive. Interoperable DRM doesn’t exist. It never will.
As an industry, we can overcome the DRM challenges. A commitment to transparent, interoperable and reasonable DRM will effectively bridge the gap between consumers and content owners, eliminate confusion and make it possible for new releases and premium content to enter the digital environment and kick off a new era of entertainment.
“We have to overcome these problems or our jobs are in danger.”
Good luck with that.
At Macrovision we are willing to lead this industry effort. We offer to assist Apple in the issues and problems with DRM that you state in your letter. Should you desire, we would also assume responsibility for FairPlay as a part of our evolving DRM offering and enable it to interoperate across other DRMs, thus increasing consumer choice and driving commonality across devices.
“We’d like nothing more than to increase our virutal monopoly to the iTunes Store. I’m noticing increased blood flow just thinking about the idea.”
In summary, we are on the verge of a transformation in home entertainment that can be as significant as the introduction of the PC into the home or the invention of the television. Already, consumer equipment manufacturers are introducing advancements in wireless connectivity and the interoperability of devices that are opening the door to new ways for consumers to acquire and view content from many sources.
“The perfect solution is right around the corner. We don’t know what it is yet, but we’ll find it. We promise. Really.”
With such an enjoyable and revolutionary experience within our grasp, we should not minimize the role that DRM can and should play in enabling the transition to electronic content distribution. Without reasonable, consistent and transparent DRM we will only delay the availability of premium content in the home. As an industry, we should not let that happen.
Fuddily fuddily FUD FUD FUD. Liar liar pants on fire.
If consumers reject DRM, content providers will either have to forego the income from selling DRM’d content or find another way.
Do you really think they are going to just stop selling stuff?
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