COPYCENSE

“What would happen if all the major record labels had a change of heart and started selling music unencumbered by digital rights management restrictions? The head of Yahoo Music thinks it would be all good. Speaking at Music 2.0 (it’s like Web 2.0, but with a beat), Dave Goldberg suggested that the RIAA and member labels give sales of non-DRMed music a try.

“Using the example of eMusic, which still uses non-DRMed MP3 files, Goldberg said that the current situation is causing problems for consumers. Different DRM measures result in incompatibilities between music services and digital music players (e.g., the iPod and every WMA-using music store). As a result, consumers end up being locked into a single service and music player, which ultimately hurts the industry. If the music industry wants to continue its online growth, it needs to pay more attention to the consumer experience.”

Eric Bangeman. Yahoo Music Exec Suggests We’d All Be Better Off Without DRM. Ars Technica. Feb. 24, 2006.

See also:

CNet Music Blog. Yahoo Exec: Labels Should Sell Music Without DRM. Feb. 23, 2006.

CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.