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Press stories say the record labels are considering releasing music in unprotected form. DRM Watch is skeptical, noting:
The logic goes something like this: digital music sales are up but not enough to offset the decline in CD sales. Therefore, to increase digital music sales, the best hope is to make digital products more attractive by jettisoning DRM and making music files freely copyable.
This is going to boost digital music revenue? We'd love to see the assumptions, models, or research on which this seemingly bizarre assertion is based. Where are the studies that show, for example, the effect of existing -- or hypothetical better future -- DRM on piracy and compare that to the rate at which overly restrictive DRM drives people to illegitimate means of obtaining digital music? DRMW thinks DRM will get better, but sees no path to its disappearance. Nor do I.
Reporters as a class seem to assume that DRM is bad and that the labels should get rid of it, but they are a bit unclear on exactly how the industry or the artists would make any money if all music were freely transferrable. Do they think consumers would suddenly see the light? "Well, since you people are now being so nice, we will pay you voluntarily." Yeah, right! Remember those folks who hoped to make a living letting people pay for software if they liked it? Don't see a lot of them around lately, do you? Only a reporter or an academic could regard this as a viable business model for music.
posted by James DeLong @ 1:56 PM | Markets: Business, Investment & Innovation
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