Re: The launch of the magnificent union of digitally

>Tom Chance wrote:
>>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3424483.stm
>>Since Gabriel also runs a service offering MP3s, does anyone have any
thoughts 
>>on what this new Union, MUDDA, will say about DRM issues? It would seem 
>>worthwhile to talk to them when they're formed to try and ensure they don't 
>>encourage use of "bad" technologies and maybe even to publicly campaign 
>>alongside groups like the UKCDR on some issues.

might be worth a shot but also worth bearing in mind that Gabriel runs OD2,
a service which primarily offers heavily DRM-ed WMA files on behalf of
happening youth brands such as MSN Music Club, HMV, Dotmusic and Coca-Cola:

http://www.ondemanddistribution.com/eng/home/home.asp

iriXx <iriXx-i/[email protected]>
>hmm.... just how 'bad' is bad?...
>
>i prefer to quote my friend and mentor Tom Barger "A little bit of DRM 
>is like saying a little bit pregnant".

hey i'm as anti-DRM as anyone, but Warp claim that "Apple has even
privately stated that they decided to use a weak form of DRM solely to get
major labels onboard" 

http://www.warprecords.com/bleep/faq.php

- so might be worth considering a position where you could argue "sure have
some DRM to shut the record companies up" (and give them token legal
protection a la DeCSS?) but in practice actually make it weak enough - a la
Apple iTunes - to permit reasonable fair use to anyone who really wants it??