France to pass law requiring open digital music

Mattress · 22nd March 2006, 13:19

Apple vs. France

Quote:

French lawmakers want all digital-music players to adopt common software standards. Is this Jobs & Co.'s cue to pack up its iPods and bid the country adieu?

The French have done it again. In an attempt to update copyright laws for the 21st century, lawmakers in France have thrown a giant spanner in the works of the nascent online digital music business. Late on Mar. 21, the lower house of the legislature, the Assemblé National, passed a law that will require sellers of digital-music players and online music services in France to open up their technical standards and become entirely interoperable.

The law, passed by the National Assembly by a vote of 296 to 193, requires companies that sell digital-music files in France to open up their digital rights management systems so that the files can be played on any device. The law, if ultimately enacted, may set the stage for Apple to shut down its digital-music sales operations in the country, though Apple hasn't said one way or the other if that is the case.

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Interesting, either this will harm the DRM in place on itunes' files or Apple will abandon france.

MegaRock · 22nd March 2006, 18:38

France is a strange place.

Omega X · 22nd March 2006, 23:28

Quote:

Originally posted by MegaRock
France is a strange place.

Yes, but this is the first of their new laws that actually makes sense.

mikm · 23rd March 2006, 00:08

Thank god.

MegaRock · 23rd March 2006, 01:18

Quote:

Originally posted by Omega X
Yes, but this is the first of their new laws that actually makes sense.

Still trying to figure that part out. The good in it is none of the music services much less record labels and hardware makers will likely ever agree on a standard of DRM technology. Bad thing is if they do they could force everyone to use it.

Might be good, might be bad. At least their fries are tasty.

rockouthippie · 23rd March 2006, 06:27

I don't think the real diffences in the ways music are stored in digital media makes much difference. This law would make the standards whatever they were non propritary and open. It isn't uncommon to have players that play a variety of formats as it is. That could be MP3, Ogg etc. Since encryption wouldn't be useful anymore, it would dissappear.

It would sure open up the door for a competition in creating new players, as it effectively says that these patents of the formats are moot

This is a step in the right direction for the consumer.

zootm · 23rd March 2006, 12:23

I believe that the most likely solution would be Apple licencing their DRM, in France, to other providers. It's unlikely that DRM being removed will happen, unfortunately.

Mattress · 23rd March 2006, 16:01

true but once the code for their DRM is available to more people the sooner it will be leaked/hacked/disabled/etc..

rockouthippie · 23rd March 2006, 16:07

And with a DRM which had zero effectivity what would be the point of bothering. It's sorta like DVDs are now. You couldn't really describe them as being copy protected at all, even though legally they are. Copy protection that doesn't protect anything is sort of a waste of software.

zootm · 23rd March 2006, 17:24

Quote:

Originally posted by Mattress
true but once the code for their DRM is available to more people the sooner it will be leaked/hacked/disabled/etc..

Who said anything about opening the code? All they have to do is provide a black box which does the DRM functions, like the one that Microsoft provide for their system.

22nd March 2006, 18:38	#2
MegaRock Forum King Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Inside my water bong Posts: 6,865	France is a strange place. Megarock Radio - St. Louis Since 1998! Don't click this link! Corporate Radio Sucks! No suits, all rock!

23rd March 2006, 00:08	#4
mikm Major Dude Join Date: May 2001 Location: somewhere else Posts: 1,286	Thank god. powered by C₈H₁₀N₄O₂

23rd March 2006, 16:01	#8
Mattress Forum King Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 4,577	true but once the code for their DRM is available to more people the sooner it will be leaked/hacked/disabled/etc.. Besides shooting out a big blank from your buttock, you can feel as if your root chakra leaked sweet hot mucus.

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23rd March 2006, 06:27	#6
rockouthippie Banned Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Oregon Posts: 11,002	I don't think the real diffences in the ways music are stored in digital media makes much difference. This law would make the standards whatever they were non propritary and open. It isn't uncommon to have players that play a variety of formats as it is. That could be MP3, Ogg etc. Since encryption wouldn't be useful anymore, it would dissappear. It would sure open up the door for a competition in creating new players, as it effectively says that these patents of the formats are moot This is a step in the right direction for the consumer.

23rd March 2006, 12:23	#7
zootm Forum King Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: the nether reaches of bonnie scotland Posts: 13,375	I believe that the most likely solution would be Apple licencing their DRM, in France, to other providers. It's unlikely that DRM being removed will happen, unfortunately.

23rd March 2006, 16:07	#9
rockouthippie Banned Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Oregon Posts: 11,002	And with a DRM which had zero effectivity what would be the point of bothering. It's sorta like DVDs are now. You couldn't really describe them as being copy protected at all, even though legally they are. Copy protection that doesn't protect anything is sort of a waste of software.